Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan addresses on February 1, 2011 lawmakers and supporters of his Justice and Development Party in Ankara. Erdogan urged Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak on February 1 to meet his people's "desire for change." In his weekly speech to his party's lawmakers in parliament, Erdogan described his appeal to Mubarak as "very sincere advice, a very sincere warning." AFP PHOTO / ADEM ALTAN (Photo credit should read ADEM ALTAN/AFP/Getty Images)
The Turkish lira has hit a record low of 12.79 against the US dollar after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan defended recent sharp rate cuts. The Turkish currency crashed by eleven percent on Tuesday.
The lira has lost 40 percent of its value this year, including a near 20 percent tumble since the beginning of last week. Against the euro, the currency weakened to a fresh record low of 14.37.
aljazeera.com
