Turkey

Turkey’s economy slid further into turmoil on Thursday after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan fired three top officials at the country’s central bank in a midnight decree that drove the country’s currency to record lows, the Wall Street Journal reported. The firings are Mr. Erdogan’s latest intervention at the bank after he fired three of its governors within two years, most recently installing a chief in March who agrees with his desire for lower interest rates. Mr.

Money changers in Turkey will be required to record the identities of their clients under new rules issued after the lira hit another low this week, Bloomberg News reported. Previously, only clients whose transactions were worth $3,000 or more were asked to submit personal information. “This new practice aims only to reduce informality in the industry, increase the level of institutionalization and ensure compliance with international regulations,” the Treasury & Finance Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.

Turkish lenders are resisting demands from the banking regulator to curb growth in consumer credit, which authorities blame for fueling inflation and the current-account deficit, Bloomberg News reported. The executives of top Turkish banks faced off against Mehmet Ali Akben, head of the banking regulator, last Thursday, according to the minutes of their meeting, a copy of which was seen by Bloomberg.

The Turkish currency sank to a record low, weighed down by concern that monetary policy remains too loose to curb accelerating inflation, Bloomberg News reported. The lira slid as much as 1.1% to 8.5981 per dollar, poised for a third daily decline this week. The losses were compounded as local accounts bought dollars ahead of large foreign-currency debt repayments, according to two traders who asked not to be named as they are not authorized to speak publicly. Turkish lira hits an all-time low against U.S.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is set to announce a new relief package for Turkey’s small businesses hit by the global pandemic, in a bid to help a key part of his electorate affected by coronavirus lockdowns, Bloomberg News reported. The government is finalizing the details of the 5 billion-lira ($598 million) loan package that will be announced following Monday’s cabinet meeting, according to a circular shared by authorities with lenders that’s seen by Bloomberg. The ministry of trade and Erdogan’s office both declined to comment.

Turkey’s central bank kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged for a second meeting on Thursday, pledging to maintain its “current” policy stance until there’s a significant drop in inflation, Bloomberg News reported. The Monetary Policy Committee left its key rate at 19% as forecast by all analysts in a Bloomberg survey. Inflation accelerated for a seventh month in April to 17.1%, spurred on by a weak lira and rising global energy prices. But new bank Governor Sahap Kavcioglu predicted the pace of price gains had peaked and would now start dropping to 12.2% by the end of 2021.

One of Turkey’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges said it lacked the financial strength to continue operations, leaving hundreds of thousands of investors fearing their savings have evaporated as authorities sought to locate the company’s 27-year-old founder, who fled the country, Bloomberg News reported. Confusion reigned about how many users of the Thodex exchange were affected and how much money was at stake. In a statement from an unknown location, Thodex Chief Executive Officer Faruk Fatih Ozer promised to repay investors and to return to Turkey to face justice after he did.

Turkey’s currency tumbled almost 8% on Monday, putting it on course for its biggest single-day selloff since 2018, following the abrupt ouster of the central-bank governor last week, the Wall Street Journal reported. The lira fell to as low as 8.280 a dollar from 7.219, before regaining some ground to trade at about 7.7865 a dollar, according to FactSet. Turkey’s stocks also plunged.

Turkey’s sovereign wealth fund is sounding out global banks on refinancing its only syndicated loan as the institution emerges from a shakeup this week, Bloomberg News reported. The fund, known as TWF, is in talks to refinance a 1 billion-euro ($1.2 billion) loan it drew in March 2019 and which matures in five days. Abundant global liquidity and the government’s guarantee on 95% of the facility will likely help the sovereign investor close the deal.