facebooktwittertelegramwhatsapp
copy short urlprintemail
+ A
A -
webmaster
DPA
Istanbul
The Turkish lira fell to a record low against the dollar early on Thursday, hours after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sacked two deputy governors of the country’s central bank. The Turkish currency has lost nearly 60 per cent of its value since 2018, making it among the worst performing currency of any emerging market.
Erdogan replaced two key officials following a special meeting with central bank governor Sahap Kavcioglu late on Wednesday. No reason for the dismissals was provided.
The Lira had been under pressure already from a surprise recent interest rate cut and high inflation. Erdogan has replaced three central bank governors in the past two years, causing investor confidence to plummet.
In a late-night decree published hours after he met Sahap Kavcioglu, the bank’s governor, Erdogan removed two deputy governors.
One of them, Ugur Namik Kucuk, was the only member of the bank’s seven-member monetary policy committee to oppose a rate cut that shocked international investors last month, according to two people familiar with the matter.
“He was the one who voted against the interest rate cut decision so it’s a pity for him and for the country,” said one Istanbul-based banker.
Kucuk was also opposed to the contentious policy of selling off the bank’s foreign currency reserves in a doomed bid to prop up the lira, the banker added. The policy began in early 2019 and continued until the end of last year.
The president, an opponent of high interest rates, has clashed with a succession of governors as he has sought to prioritise high growth at all costs — including soaring inflation. He has sacked the central bank chief three times since mid-2019, as well as dismissing a number of other officials.
copy short url   Copy
15/10/2021
10