Turkey fires central bank chief as lira slides to record low

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 7, ARMENPRESS. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan removed thecountry's central bank governor Murat Uysal from his post on Saturdayafter the Turkish lira reached a record low, Deutsche Welle reports.

The decision was made by presidential decree and announced inthe country's Official Gazette, with no immediate reason given for the sacking. Uysal's replacement after just 16 months in the jobwas named as former finance minister Naci Agbal.

Uysal took on the role after a dispute between Erdogan and the previous governor, Murat Cetinkaya, over cutting interest rates.

In the past few months, the lira has hit repeated historic lows against international currenciesand by late Friday stood at 8.52 to buy one US dollar.

The lira has lost almost 30% of its value against the dollar this year, with markets worried about a persistently high inflation rate that remains in double digits.