Turkey has means to curtail currency shifts: President

By Sibel Ugurlu

ANKARA

Turkey has means to curtail the currency fluctuations in the short term, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday.

"The exchange rate fluctuations are due to global factors and are not related to Turkey alone," Erdogan said in a meeting with former lawmakers during an iftar (fast-breaking) meal in Ankara.

Erdogan underlined that partial currency fluctuations were not in line with the economic realities of Turkey.

"It is also a fact that we are a little bit more influenced by this negative process due to the long-standing negative attitudes towards our country in the international arena," Erdogan said.

"Turkey’s economy grew 7.4 percent last year and is still maintaining a growth trend at this level. Our exports exceeded $161 billion as of the end of April. At the end of the year, they are expected to exceed $170 billion," Erdogan said.

Erdogan said necessary measures would be taken to decrease the inflation rate and reduce the currency deficit soon after the elections.

Earlier on Wednesday, the Turkish Central Bank announced an increase of late liquidity window interest rates by three percentage points. The borrowing rate was kept at 0 percent while the lending rate was increased from 13.50 to 16.50 percent.

The bank's move came after the U.S. dollar/Turkish lira exchange rate hit a historic high on Wednesday, climbing to around 4.93. Following the bank's decision, the dollar/lira rate fell steeply to below 4.60.

In the beginning of the year, the USD/TRY rate was 3.78 while the average rate was 3.65 last year.