Qatar’s purchase of a 10th of the Istanbul stock exchange sparked an outcry from Turkey’s opposition, which claimed President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is selling off the country’s prized assets to save the struggling economy.
The sale of the Borsa Istanbul stake to the Qatari Investment Authority was completed for an undisclosed fee when Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim met Mr Erdogan in Ankara last week.
Other deals included a high-end shopping centre in Istanbul, a port in the Mediterranean city of Antalya and a development project on Istanbul’s Golden Horn waterway.
“We do not know how much you sold the 10 per cent shares of Borsa Istanbul for,” opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu said, addressing Mr Erdogan in a TV interview at the weekend.
“Where does your love for Qatar come from? Everything is being sold. If they say tomorrow, 'We have sold half of the presidential palace to Qataris,' no one should be surprised.”
The latest surge in Qatari investment follows a pattern of growing ties between Ankara and Doha, which have accelerated over the past couple of years as the Turkish economy spiralled downwards.
Since agreeing to strengthen their strategic relationship in 2014, Qatar has invested heavily in Turkey.
In May, Doha tripled its currency-swap agreement with Ankara to $15 billion, helping to restore the reserves Turkey had burned through to defend the lira, which lost nearly 40 per cent of its value this year.
Figures provided by the Turkish embassy in Doha to Anadolu news agency show Qatari investments in Turkey are worth $22bn.
But the opaque nature of the stock exchange sale by the Turkey Wealth Fund raises questions.
“It’s a welcome measure that the borsa attracts foreign investment but the real issue is the lack of transparency,” said Can Selcuki, general manager at the Istanbul Economics consultancy.
“If this was a private company no one would care, but this is a public company owned by the public.
"Therefore, this transaction begs the question, how much was received for the 10 per cent, how was the valuation made, who was it done by?”
In nine other agreements last Thursday Qatar bought 42 per cent of the Istinye Park shopping mall for a reported $1bn, invested an unspecified amount in the Golden Horn Marina project and bought Antalya’s Port Akdeniz for $140 million.
While Qatar has poured cash into the Turkish economy, the two countries also have converging interests in the Middle East and North Africa, notably Libya, and Turkey has a large military base in the emirate.
Both states are supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood and espouse its ideology.
Mr Erdogan and the emir are said to have a close personal relationship.
Two years ago, Sheikh Tamim presented the president with a $500m Boeing 747, a present Mr Erdogan said was for the Turkish state.
The emir and his mother bought land along the route of the planned Istanbul canal, a scheme Mr Erdogan has championed to provide an alternative for shipping to the Bosphorus.
The proposal is widely opposed by environmentalists and civil society groups.
“Clearly, the relationship between Turkey and Qatar goes beyond the boundaries of a normal relationship between two countries,” Mr Selcuki said.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Titanium Escrow profile
Started: December 2016
Founder: Ibrahim Kamalmaz
Based: UAE
Sector: Finance / legal
Size: 3 employees, pre-revenue
Stage: Early stage
Investors: Founder's friends and Family
Ibrahim's play list
Completed an electrical diploma at the Adnoc Technical Institute
Works as a public relations officer with Adnoc
Apart from the piano, he plays the accordion, oud and guitar
His favourite composer is Johann Sebastian Bach
Also enjoys listening to Mozart
Likes all genres of music including Arabic music and jazz
Enjoys rock groups Scorpions and Metallica
Other musicians he likes are Syrian-American pianist Malek Jandali and Lebanese oud player Rabih Abou Khalil
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Zayed%20Centre%20for%20Research
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'Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore'
Rating: 3/5
Directed by: David Yates
Starring: Mads Mikkelson, Eddie Redmayne, Ezra Miller, Jude Law
HAJJAN
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Abu%20Bakr%20Shawky%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cbr%3EStarring%3A%20Omar%20Alatawi%2C%20Tulin%20Essam%2C%20Ibrahim%20Al-Hasawi%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Wicked: For Good
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater
Rating: 4/5
'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
Last-16
France 4
Griezmann (13' pen), Pavard (57'), Mbappe (64', 68')
Argentina 3
Di Maria (41'), Mercado (48'), Aguero (90 3')
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
EXPATS
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Lulu%20Wang%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Nicole%20Kidman%2C%20Sarayu%20Blue%2C%20Ji-young%20Yoo%2C%20Brian%20Tee%2C%20Jack%20Huston%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Fly Etihad or Emirates from the UAE to Moscow from 2,763 return per person return including taxes.
Where to stay
Trips on the Golden Eagle Trans-Siberian cost from US$16,995 (Dh62,414) per person, based on two sharing.
How to help
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200
KEY%20DATES%20IN%20AMAZON'S%20HISTORY
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