Turkish Lira, Russian rouble tumble

LONDON/MOSCOW

The Russian rouble and the Turkish Lira became the worst performing emerging market currencies on April 10, with the lira again hitting record lows.

The rouble fell over 4 percent at one point to touch its lowest since December 2016, extending its April 9 losses when it also slumped over 4 percent, its biggest daily fall in over three years, according to Reuters data.

Russian government pledged to minimize the fallout from U.S. sanctions on April 10 and dismissed sharp falls in the rouble and financial markets as short-term volatility, saying Russia needed time to adjust to the new curbs, as reported by Reuters.

Turkish assets took another beating due to geopolitical tensions related to Syria and after President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan reiterated on April 9 that interest rates must be cut to “save” investors.

The lira touched another record low against the dollar, while stocks tumbled 2.5 percent on April 10.

The lira saw 4.14 against the greenback late on April 10.