ISTANBUL: Turkey secured a tripling of its currency-swap agreement with Qatar to $15 billion, the central bank said on Wednesday, providing some much-needed foreign funding to reinforce its depleted reserves and help steady the Turkish lira.
Ankara had been urgently seeking access to funds from Doha and elsewhere to head off a potential currency spiral, and analysts say tens of billions of dollars might be needed. A senior Turkish official told Reuters talks are continuing.
Turkey’s central bank said the deal with its Qatari counterpart — which raised the existing FX limit from the equivalent of $5 billion — would support financial stability and trade.
The lira touched a historic low earlier this month as investors fretted over a drop in the central bank’s net FX reserves and the country’s relatively high foreign debt obligations, accelerating Ankara’s overseas funding search.
Reuters reported last week that officials from Turkey’s Treasury and central bank had appealed to counterparts in Qatar and China about expanding existing swap lines, and to the United Kingdom and Japan about possibly establishing them.
Turkey has a roughly $1.7 billion swap facility with Beijing.
“Talks on swaps are continuing and especially some are in a very positive situation. We expect positive results from them soon as well,” the senior Turkish official said before the central bank’s announcement.
The official, who requested anonymity, characterized some of the conversations as ongoing and others as on hold.
The lira has rallied over the last eight trading days on expectations of new funding that would stem earlier selling in the lira that some analysts said risked escalating as in 2018, when Turkey’s currency crisis shook emerging markets.
It was down 0.2% to 6.795 versus the dollar at 0822 GMT on Wednesday.
The Turkish central bank said the amendment of the limit on the 2018 swap agreement with Qatar’s central bank aimed to “facilitate bilateral trade” in local currencies and “support financial stability of the two countries.”
Under the facility, the central bank in Doha would accept Turkish lira in exchange for Qatari riyals.
Turkey has moved on from its preferred source of dollar funding, the US Federal Reserve, which appears unlikely to extend a swap line based on comments from current and former Fed officials.
Tatha Ghose, analyst at Commerzbank, said the lira rallied on speculation about deals with Tokyo and London, but added that swaps are a “secondary story” to prospects of a rebound in Turkish exports now that European economies are re-opening from coronavirus-related lockdowns.
Stronger export numbers would “dispel the lira’s current woes, although many problems will remain in the longer-term,” he wrote in a client note.
Net FX reserves at the central bank have fallen to $26 billion from $40 billion this year, in part due to state bank FX interventions to help stabilize the lira, analysts say. Turkey’s 12-month foreign debt obligations are $168 billion.
Qatar offers Turkey relief by tripling FX swap line to $15bn
https://arab.news/y7ynk
Qatar offers Turkey relief by tripling FX swap line to $15bn
- Ankara had been urgently seeking access to funds from Doha and elsewhere to head off a potential currency spiral
- Turkey’s central bank said the deal with its Qatari counterpart would support financial stability and trade
Saudi Arabia’s foreign reserves rise to a 6-year high of $475bn
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s foreign reserves climbed 3 percent month on month in January to SR1.78 trillion, up SR58.7 billion ($15.6 billion) from December and marking a six-year high.
On an annual basis, the Saudi Central Bank’s net foreign assets rose by 10 percent, equivalent to SR155.8 billion, according to data from the Saudi Central Bank, Argaam reported.
The reserve assets, a crucial indicator of economic stability and external financial strength, comprise several key components.
According to the central bank, also known as SAMA, the Kingdom’s reserves include foreign securities, foreign currency, and bank deposits, as well as its reserve position at the International Monetary Fund, Special Drawing Rights, and monetary gold.
The rise in reserves underscores the strength and liquidity of the Kingdom’s financial position and aligns with Saudi Arabia’s goal of strengthening its financial safety net as it advances economic diversification under Vision 2030.
The value of foreign currency reserves, which represent approximately 95 percent of the total holdings, increased by about 10 percent during January 2026 compared to the same month in 2025, reaching SR1.68 trillion.
The value of the reserve at the IMF increased by 9 percent to reach SR13.1 billion.
Meanwhile, SDRs rose by 5 percent during the period to reach SR80.5 billion.
The Kingdom’s gold reserves remained stable at SR1.62 billion, the same level it has maintained since January 2008.
Saudi Arabia’s foreign reserve assets saw a monthly rise of 5 percent in November, climbing to SR1.74 trillion, according to the Kingdom’s central bank.
Overall, the continued advancement in reserve assets highlights the strength of Saudi Arabia’s fiscal and monetary buffers. These resources support the national currency, help maintain financial system stability, and enhance the country’s ability to navigate global economic volatility.
The sustained accumulation of foreign reserves is a critical pillar of the Kingdom’s economic stability. It directly reinforces investor confidence in the riyal’s peg to the US dollar, a foundational monetary policy, by providing SAMA with ample resources to defend the currency if needed.
Furthermore, this financial buffer enhances the nation’s sovereign credit profile, lowers national borrowing costs, and provides essential fiscal space to navigate global economic volatility while continuing to fund its ambitious Vision 2030 transformation agenda.
