COVID-19 pandemic in Turkey

The Central Bank has announced that it will scrap the implementation regarding securities maintenance based on loan growth while raising the monthly maximum interest rates to be charged for credit cards. 

The bank said it is considering terminating the securities maintenance practice "in a short while."

Caseloads of hospitals across the country are declining as the COVID-19 pandemic is weakening by the day, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca has said, warning that people, especially the elderly, still need to get their booster shots against the virus.

The Health Ministry's Science Board will discuss the latest situation in the COVID-19 pandemic and the virus-related measures, the country's top health official has said.

Speaking at the northwestern province of Bursa, Fahrettin Koca noted that the number of daily infections has declined to 3,200 as of April 17, which marked the lowest level in the past one and a half years.

Deaths from the coronavirus continue to decline, while the number of COVID-19 cases shows a downward trend in Turkey, according to the data from the Health Ministry.

The ministry reported less than 20 deaths on April 18 and 19, the lowest fatalities recorded in months.

The worst of the COVID-19 pandemic is over for Turkey, and people should not worry anymore, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca has said.

The Health Ministry's Science Board, which advises the government on the pandemic, will have an important meeting next week in which members will discuss the use of face masks in schools, Koca told reporters on April 14.

The weekly COVID-19 incidence rates in Turkey's three largest cities, Istanbul, Ankara and İzmir, have declined.

Hospitalizations in Turkey due to COVID-19 is in decline, the country's health minister has said, however, renewing calls on the public to get a booster shot against the virus.

"Following a noticeable drop, the number of daily cases remain at a certain level," Fahrettin Koca wrote on Twitter.

Turkey's three most populous cities, Istanbul, Ankara and İzmir, have seen increases in the weekly COVID-19 cases at varying rates.

The incidence rate, measuring the number of coronavirus infections per 100,000 people, rose slightly to around 895 in Istanbul, which is home to nearly 16 million residents, in the week of Jan. 29-Feb. 4 from 890 between Jan. 22 and Jan. 28.

The number of COVID-19 cases in Turkey has been steady for more than a month, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca has said, urging people to stick to the anti-virus measures to keep the pandemic under control.

The emergency authorization application for the domestically developed COVID-19 vaccine, Turkovac, has been submitted to the Turkish Medicines and Medical Devices Agency (TİTCK), Health Minister Fahrettin Koca has announced.