Turkish lira, stocks fall, borrowing rate rises

The Turkish currency fell further against the dollar and the borrowing rate on 10-year bonds jumped to 10.0 percent in morning trading on Thursday. Traders were anxious about the prospects for a tightening of US monetary policy after the release on Wednesday of minutes from the US Federal Reserve's last policy meeting. The lira fell to 1.9812 to the dollar from 1.9670 at the close on Wednesday. On the government debt market, Turkey's 10-year borrowing rate surged to 10.0 percent in morning trading, from 9.53 percent late on Wednesday. The main Turkish stock market index was showing a fall of 2.0 percent after falling 3.46 percent on Wednesday. These pressures on the economy were building up despite a decision by the central bank on Tuesday to rais its overnight rate by 0.50 percentage points to 7.75 percent on Tuesday, having raised it by 0.75 points at the end of July. Earlier in July it launched urgent action to buy the lira on the foreign exchange market in an attempt to hold the currency up. However the supportive effect of the rate rise on Tuesday was short lived, and the lira fell again on Wednesday, although it rallied later. Central bank governor Erdem Basci said on Wednesday that the additional monetary tightening would be maintained everyday until further notice. He also said that the bank would sell a minimum of $100 million in foreign exchange auctions. After Basci's announcement, the lira went down to 1.9550 but after the foreign exchange auctions, it climbed up again and ended the day at 1.9670. Turkey, which analysts say also faces problems with excessive bank credit and a balance of payments current deficit, is one of many emerging market currencies hit by expectations that an increasingly buoyant United States will soon roll back stimulus measures. Easy-money policies in the United States had driven huge flows of foreign investment into emerging markets in search of higher yields. But now some of that money is flowing out. India, Brazil and South Africa have also experienced heavy downward pressure on their currencies and financial markets recently.