Turkish Lira Drops to Record Low Against the Dollar

The Turkish lira fell to its lowest level ever against the dollar during early trading on Monday, increasing its losses this year to over 28 percent and continuing its decline after an unexpected interest rate cut last week. The lira was priced at 18.4440 against the dollar as of 04:53 GMT, down from its closing level of 18.4280 on Friday. Earlier, the lira dropped to a record level of 18.4450. The central bank unexpectedly cut the benchmark interest rate by 100 basis points last week to 12 percent, citing economic slowdown despite inflation rising to over 80 percent in August, as reported by Reuters.