Don't watch forex, focus on the big picture, Turkey's Erdogan says

[August 10, 2018]  ISTANBUL (Reuters) - People should not pay close attention to foreign exchange prices, but should instead focus on the "big picture", Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday, shrugging off a crisis in the lira.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan greets members of his ruling AK Party during a meeting in Ankara, Turkey August 4, 2018. Kayhan Ozer/Presidential Palace/Handout via REUTERS

Addressing a crowd in the northeastern city of Bayburt, Erdogan described the sell-off as an attack on Turkey's economy and urged his supporters to ignore it. The lira weakened on his comments. At 1218 GMT it was at 6.0800 to the dollar, down some 9 percent on the day.

(Reporting by Ece Toksabay and Sarah Dadouch; Writing by David Dolan; Editing by Dominic Evans)

[© 2018 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2018 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.  Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.