Ankara to 'continue taking steps' to save Turkish lira's value

Turkey will continue to take steps to protect Turkish lira's value in international trade, Treasury and Finance Minister Berat Albayrak said on Tuesday.

Speaking at a symposium in capital Ankara, Albayrak said: "The U.S. dollar has been turned into a tool for diplomatic punishment. The U.S. dollar has lost its credibility."

The minister said Turkey will take steps keeping in view the free-market to reduce currency risk of companies.

"We will determine companies affected by rising foreign currencies and we will continue to put them at ease," he added.

He also said tangible and effective reforms will be the most important part of Turkey's economic policy in the coming period.

The minister said Turkey is continuing with its "strong step-by-step path," making "all kinds of preparations from A to Z."

"We will see that our Turkish lira will be even stronger," he added.

The lira strengthened against the dollar on Tuesday after actions by the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey (CBRT) and reassurances from the government.

On Tuesday, the dollar tumbled more than 5 percent to 6.4591 against the lira after opening the day at 6.8839, and the country's benchmark stock exchange index BIST-100 surged by 1.1 percent.

The CBRT on Monday moved "to support financial stability and sustain the effective functioning of markets," introducing measures on the Turkish lira and the foreign exchange market (FX) liquidity management.

Albayrak also announced Tuesday that he would hold a conference call with investors from the United States, Europe and the Middle East on Thursday.