Turkeys central bank calls emergency meeting over lira plunge The Turkish central bank has called an emergency meeting of its monetary policy committee for Tuesday, following a sharp fall in the lira against the euro and US dollar. The bank said it would discuss recent developments and take the necessary policy measures for price stability at the meeting. It set out its plans in a statement at midnight (22:00) GMT Tuesday. The move comes amid market pressure for the bank to raise interest rates. After the announcement, the lira firmed to 2.3420 against the dollar, compared with a record low of 2.39 earlier in the day. But it fell 0.5% against the euro to 3.17740. Reluctance Just last week, the central bank decided to hold rates steady at its rate-setting meeting. Analysts say the central bank is reluctant to raise rates for fear of slowing economic growth ahead of local elections due in March. Turkish markets have been hit by an investigation into public sector corruption involving the construction industry. The probe, which came to light in December, saw three ministers resign and prompted a cabinet reshuffle. The bank last held an emergency meeting in 2011, when it decided to cut its main policy rate to 5.75% from 6.25%.
Posted on: Mon, 27 Jan 2014 12:02:23 +0000