The devastating earthquake that hit Turkey in February 2023 could cost the Turkish economy more than $84 billion dollars, Bloomberg reported. This could severely impact Turkey’s economic prospects in the medium and long term.
The $84 billion estimate was given by the Turkish Enterprise and Business Confederation (Turkonfed). The losses would amount to 10% of the country’s GDP. According to the organization’s report, the natural disaster caused about $70.8 billion of damage to residential buildings.
Turkey’s budget revenue is expected to decline by $10.4 billion. Losses to the labor force would cost Turkey’s economy $2.9 billion, Turkonfed said.
On Monday, February 6, Turkey experienced an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.7 on the Richter scale. It was considered to be the strongest quake to hit the country since 1939. The worst affected area was the Kahramanmaras province in Southern Turkey. According to initial reports, about 8,000 buildings collapsed across ten provinces hit by the disaster. The death toll was estimated at 20,665.
