Bets Against Turkish Lira Hit Record With Controls Under Strain
- Lira briefly weakened beyond 20 per dollar twice this week
- Traders see 54% odds of lira hitting 29 per dollar by year-end
A person counts Turkish lira banknotes.
Photographer: Erhan Demirtas/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Traders are more bearish than ever on the Turkish lira on expectations that market forces will eventually overwhelm government exchange controls.
Traders are already testing policymakers’ resolve. The lira slid past 20 against the dollar for the first time in Istanbul on Monday, weakening as much as 4.1%, before wiping out the losses to end the day little changed. The currency fell briefly beyond the 20 mark again the following day, before paring its drop.