Turkish Lira Drops Slightly Ahead of Rate Decision

The Turkish lira fell 0.45% against the US dollar ahead of a central bank meeting on interest rates, in which the bank is expected to raise its benchmark interest rate by 150 basis points.

The currency reached 7.6590 against the dollar, a level just below its closing price on Wednesday at 7.6250. And the pound is down by about 23% since the beginning of the year.

A Reuters poll concluded that the central bank is expected to continue tightening policy and raise its benchmark interest rate to 16.5% from 15%.