The Turkish lira slid to beyond 17.2 against the dollar on Thursday, slipping for a fourth consecutive session towards December’s record lows amid concerns over soaring inflation, a widening current account deficit and Ankara’s policy response, Reuters reported.
The lira stood at 17.20005 at 0612 GMT slightly weaker than Wednesday’s close of 17.17. It has lost more than 23 percent of its value against the U.S. currency this year after a slide of 44 percent last year.
Last December’s lira crisis was triggered by a series of unorthodox interest rate cuts carried out in line with President Tayyip Erdoğan’s economic plan, which prioritizes production, exports, growth and low borrowing costs.
The lira has been the worst performer among emerging markets for several years due largely to investors’ concerns about economic and monetary policy under Erdoğan’s government, leaving households financially strained ahead of elections set for mid-2023.
Erdoğan set off the latest bout of weakness after a cabinet meeting on Monday when he said Turkey would not raise rates but would rather continue cutting them in the face of high living costs.