Turkey taking action to ease market concerns - finance minister

Turkey has drafted an action plan and its institutions will start taking necessary steps on Monday morning to ease financial markets’ concerns, Finance Minister Berat Albayrak said, after the lira plunged last week.

In an interview with Hurriyet newspaper, Albayrak said a plan has been prepared for banks and the real economy sector including small to mid-sized businesses, which are the most affected by the foreign exchange fluctuations.

“From Monday morning onwards our institutions will take the necessary steps and will share the announcements with the market,” Albayrak said.

“All our action plan and measures are ready,” he said, but did not provide details on what those steps would be.

On the brink of a full-blown currency crisis, Turkey’s lira plunged to a record low on Friday, tumbling as much as 18 percent in its biggest daily drop since 2001.

“This is the sign of a clear attack, a challenge,” Albayrak said.