Turkey has huge potential but risk to match

Article Excerpt

The Republic of Turkey has a large economy that’s grown by an average of 4.7% per year for the past two decades. However, recent political turmoil has wreaked havoc on the currency, which has in turn pushed interest rates to punishing heights. Investing in Turkey entails significant risk, but the potential rewards could be huge. Here is one ETF that provides exposure to the top Turkish public companies. ISHARES MSCI TURKEY ETF $24.64 (Nasdaq symbol TUR; TSINetwork ETF Rating: Aggressive; Market cap: $403.4 million) tracks the performance of the largest publicly listed Turkish companies. Financial companies account for 29.5% of its assets, while Industrials (16.7%), Consumer Defensive (12.7%), Basic Materials (15.4%), Energy (8.5%) and Telecommunications (6.4%) are other key segments. The ETF holds a portfolio of 53 stocks; the top 10 holdings make up a sizeable 63.0% of its assets. Top holdings include: Turkiye Garanti Bankasi (financial services, 9.9%), Akbank (financial services, 8.7%), Tupras-Turkiye Petrol Rafineleri (energy, 8.4%), Bim Birlesik Magazalar (retailer, 7.5%), Turkcell Itletisim Hizmetleri…