ISTANBUL: The Turkish lira weakened to a record low of 9.85 against the dollar on Monday after President Tayyip Erdogan said at the weekend he had ordered the expulsion of the ambassadors of the United States and nine other Western countries.

The lira has since rebounded, last fetching 9.7150 and was quoted at 9.7225-9.7600 at 0402 GMT. Bankers attributed the early weakness to Erdogan's comments on Saturday.

On Friday the lira, which has fallen 24% so far this year, closed at 9.5950.

Turkish lira edges close to record low as dollar firms

The currency had hit record lows last week after the Turkish central bank cut its policy rate by 200 basis points, despite rising inflation, in a shock move derided as reckless by economists and opposition lawmakers.