Turkey’s economic losses from the earthquakes are estimated at $84 billion

The earthquakes severely affected 10 provinces and 13.5 million people in the southeast of the country, as well as in neighboring Syria.

According to preliminary estimates, strong earthquakes in Turkey will lead to economic losses in the amount of $84 billion, or about 10% of GDP, Bloomberg reports.

The February 6 magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 earthquakes caused about $70.8 billion worth of damage to homes and another $10.4 billion in lost national income, according to the Confederation of Turkish Enterprises and Businesses.

Turkonfed, a group, said the job losses would cost the Turkish economy $2.9 billion. The earthquakes severely affected 10 provinces and 13.5 million people in the southeast of the country, as well as in neighboring Syria.

Turkonfed’s calculations are based on the 1999 earthquakes near Istanbul, which killed around 18,000 people. The death toll from the latest devastation is more than that of the 1999 earthquake, and thousands of people are still missing.

Damage to Turkey’s infrastructure, including roads and electricity grids, as well as hospitals and schools, could push the country’s budget deficit to more than 5.4% of GDP this year, compared to the official forecast of 3.5% .

Preliminary calculations by Bloomberg Economics suggested that disaster-related costs, including recovery efforts, could be as much as 5.5% of GDP.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his government would finish building housing within a year, with about 100 billion lira ($5.3 billion) earmarked for disaster relief.

Recall that in Turkey, approximately 130 people were detained or given arrest warrants, probably involved in the construction of buildings that collapsed as a result of earthquakes and killed their inhabitants.