Istanbul showing great promise as the end of the year financial numbers come in and show that if Istanbul keeps on track it will quickly become one of the world's strongest economies by 2023 and a strong contender for the 2020 Olympic Games.

December 31 - Istanbul 2020 are again emphasising Turkey's growing financial vitality as a major reason why they should be awarded the Olympics and Paralympics.

With Istanbul, along with rivals Madrid and Tokyo, due to hand in their Candidature Files to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in Lausanne next Monday (January 7) they are hailing a new record on the city's Stock Exchange as a further sign of Turkey's rapid development.

The Istanbul Stock Exchange (ISE) ended the year today at a record 78,208.44 points, the first time it has exceeded 78,000 points since its founding in 1985.

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