Turkey's Central Bank Announces Steps To Help Curb Lira Decline

The Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey on Tuesday announced moves to tackle "unhealthy price formations" in the market that it says are "inconsistent with economic fundamentals. The moves come amid unrelenting pressure on the Turkish lira. Among moves announced by the central bank, it said foreign-exchange reserve requirement ratios have been cut by 50 basis points for all maturities, and alongside this, some $1.5 billion in liquidity will be provided to the country's financial system. "Developments in markets are monitored closely and if deemed necessary, additional steps may be taken in order to maintain price stability and financial stability," the central bank said in a statement on its website. The lira has lost 24% of its value over 12 months, and has been under selling pressure anew at the start of 2017. The lira was down another 1.2% against the dollar at $3.7557 on Tuesday. Political tension in the country, concerns that the policies of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threaten the independence of the central bank and terrorist attacks have all helped weigh on the lira over the past year. Read: How politics rocked the currency market in 2016