By Muhammed Ali Gurtas

ANKARA

Turkey's benchmark stock index closed on Thursday flat at 92,763.31 points. 

Borsa Istanbul's BIST 100 index fell 27.68 points, or 0.03 percent, from Wednesday's close of 92,790.99 points, while it started the day at 93,121.74 points. 

The total market value of listed shares on the BIST 100 was some 612 billion Turkish liras ($91.6 billion) at the close, while the total trade volume of the benchmark index was around 5.1 billion Turkish liras ($773 million). 

The benchmark index hovered between 92,763.31 points and 94,166.24 points during trading hours, while 46 stocks on the BIST 100 rose, 45 fell, and nine were flat compared to the previous close.

Among all sectors, the investment trusts sector index was the top gainer, up 3.77 percent, while the BIST holding index fell the most with a 0.96 percent decline.

Shares of real estate investment trust Ozderici (OZGYO) showed the best performance of the day -- up 14.54 percent -- and stocks of Soda Sanayii (SODA), part of Turkey's Sisecam which is a top international glass manufacturer, recorded the largest decline with a 4.01 percent drop.

The BIST 100's most-traded listed companies were national flag carrier Turkish Airlines, prominent defense company Aselsan, iron and steel producer Kardemir, private lender Garanti Bankasi and leading petrochemicals producer Petkim. 

The U.S. dollar/Turkish lira exchange rate fell to 6.5650 as of 5 p.m. local time (1400GMT) Thursday, compared with 6.6280 at the previous close.

One euro traded for 7.6610 Turkish liras by market close, while the EUR/TRY exchange rate was 7.7050 at Wednesday's close. The GBP/TRY exchange rate was 8.5280 at Thursday's close, while one British pound traded for 8.6080 Turkish liras at the previous close.

In Borsa Istanbul's Precious Metals and Diamond Markets, one ounce of gold traded for $1,192.25 as of 4.30 p.m. local time (1330GMT) Thursday, while it was $1,193.10 at the previous close.

As of 6 p.m. local time (1500GMT), the price of Brent oil stood at $77.50 per barrel -- hovering between $76.89 and $77.70 during Thursday -- climbing from around $66 at the beginning of 2018.