Istanbul’s investors celebrated on Friday a strong first-quarter results from Turkish banks whose profits have been boosted by central bank rate cuts.

Shares in Garanti Bank, the most traded stock on the exchange, rose 4.7 per cent in morning trade after it reported bank-only net income of TL651m ($416m), above expectations and 43.6 per cent higher than in the first quarter of 2008. The figures also showed strong deposit growth and increased provisioning against bad loans.