ANKARA: Turkiye’s central bank returned to being a buyer of foreign currency last week, lifting its gross reserves by $6 billion for the first time in nearly two months, bankers’ calculations from data show, after it had sold $57 billion since mid-March.
Market turmoil erupted in March over the detention and jailing of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, who is President Tayyip Erdogan’s main political rival, triggering a policy pivot including a hike in the bank’s key interest rate last month.
But the latest forex buying and jump in gross reserves reinforces growing signs that markets are stabilising.
Turkish central bank surprises with rate hike to 46% after market turmoil
Bankers’ calculations, based on preliminary data, also showed that the central bank’s net reserves rose by $4.6 billion last week to stand at $37.4 billion.
Net reserves excluding swaps on the other hand increased by $4.3 billion to stand at $18.1 billion, bankers calculate.