Turkish central bank calls emergency meeting as lira falls

The Turkish central bank said on Monday it would hold an extraordinary meeting on Tuesday, as the local currency continues to fall against the dollar and the euro. "The Monetary Policy Committee is to convene on January 28 to evaluate recent developments and take precautions which are necessary for price stability," the bank said in a statement. The decisions will be announced at 2200 GMT in a press bulletin, it added. The bank, which intervened heavily in the foreign exchange market to support the lira last week, is fighting hard with intervention to defend the lira while under strong political pressure not to raise interest rates. Last week, the central bank ploughed at least $2 billion (1.5 billion euros) into the foreign exchange market in an unsuccessful attempt to prop up the lira. The Turkish currency has been hitting record lows almost daily this year, under pressure from an escalating political crisis over a corruption scandal roiling the government as well as concerns about the economy. The lira sank to another low of 2.3616 to the dollar and 3.2345 to the euro in morning trading on Monday.