Turkish lira hits new record low amid political crisis

ISTANBUL

The Turkish lira plunged Thursday to a new low against the dollar and shares also dropped. REUTERS photo

The Turkish lira plunged Thursday to a new low against the dollar and shares also dropped, pressured by a corruption scandal roiling the government.
 
The lira fell below 2.18 to the dollar while the main Istanbul stock exchange index lost 1.91 percent to 66,503.69 points.

 
Already under pressure this year over expectations that the Fed will begin to stem a flood of dollars that have boosted global emerging markets, the lira and stock markets have been beaten down further by political tensions in the country.

The corruption and bribery investigation that began on Dec. 17, leading to three ministers’ resignations, has tumbled the currency further, causing it to surpass 2.1 threshold against dollar.