Turkish lira slips as Erdogan claims presidential election victory

Turkey's lira slipped towards a fresh record low against the dollar as President Tayyip Erdogan claimed victory in the country's presidential election on Sunday, a win that would steer his increasingly authoritarian rule into a third decade.

The currency opened at 20.05 to the dollar as the new trading week got underway, not far off the 20.06 record low hit on Friday.

The lira, prone to sharp swings before regular trading hours, has weakened more than 6 percent since the start of the year and lost more than 90 percent of its value over the past decade with the economy in the grip of boom and bust cycles, rampant bouts of inflation and a currency crisis.

Since a 2021 crisis, the authorities have taken an increasingly hands-on role in foreign exchange markets with daily moves having become unnaturally small and mostly recording a weakening.

If confirmed by the final tally, “Erdogan is unlikely to embrace an outright economic orthodox approach,” Wolfango Piccoli, co-president at advisory firm Teneo said in emailed comments.

“However, some adjustments to the current heterodox approach could be adopted with the aim of gaining time ahead of the March 2024 local elections.”

Trading is expected to be thin on Monday, with many markets in Europe, as well as the United States closed for holidays.

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