I came to Turkey in September 2017 to study as a mechanical engineering student. Before coming here like everyone I have made my research.
About Turkey and also the university. When you search Denizli in google in the image section, they show you only the Pamukkale Travertine I was like a place like this is impossible let us just go I told to myself.
September 29 early in the morning we have land at Istanbul airport and in the evening I took another flight to Denizli a city where I didn’t know that I am going to spend over 4 years and meet different people with different languages background and mindset …
When I fisrt meet the Lira
In my first week, some friends and I went to the bank to exchange money (dollar, euro) for Turkish lira, that was the first time having this currency in my hands before I used to make a collection of different money I knew nothing about rate, the value of money or currency ı was just fascinated by owning different banknotes.
I have never understood their value. I remember that time I exchange 300,00 euro and the guy gave an amount of 1.253,61 TL one of my friends exchanged 200 dollars and he gets 707,37 TL. That time the dollar was 3,53870 TL and 1 euro was equal to 4,178700 TL it was at Vakifbank.
Today, we can observe something very different like:
1 USD = 8,89031 TRY
1 Euro = 10,41479 TRY
At the same bank is this normal? Yes, it is because the lira has lost its value. But is this normal for a currency to depreciate so fast as the Lira?
I don’t know …
In 2018, I realized something strange like the price of the food, fast food and a lot of things which are very daily used and one of the things that really got my attention was to see the price of the minibus increasing quick so I made some research.
Why everything is being expensive?
I asked some friends, research on the internet, watched videos on YouTube about why everything is expensive and why prices are changing constantly?
A lot of answers everyone saying something different, giving different responses I was very confused but all of those answers had one common point The depreciation of the Turkish lira.
The Turkish lira's devaluation
Actually, it started a long time ago but in 2018; it started a race without hope of non-coming back the more it values more I become curious about trying to understand.
The reason behind but exchange rates change regularly based on the fluctuating global trade markets.
The United States and Turkey did not have a good relationship the US increased 50% the price of steel and 20% by aluminium price, which Turkey was depending on the US.
On 14 August 2018, the Turkish lira was 6,76 per USD (1 USD = 6,76 TRY). I used to check it every morning hoping that something will change but Fiat money doesn’t behave like cryptocurrency; it takes time to regulate government money to a lower value.
So I bought dollars with the idea of: if it increased I will earn money and if it loses its value, I will just wait till it goes up again and sell. I didn’t know we called this the forex (Forex exchange market). The forex exchange market includes all aspects of buying, selling and exchanging currencies at current or determined prices.
From there I got more interested, to learn more, understand when it goes up or down (bullish -bearish), I was very passionate about it.
I used to talk too much about it my friend; he was tired to listen to me open topics concerning currency. I had none talk so ı opened a website and named it moneyandcurrency.com but no longer available.
Another friend studies economy so ı become close to him we can spend hours on the topics of the Fiat money.
At that time the lifestyle around us was still the same the price is still climbing as a student get in the minibus and go to school every day we realize easily how it escalates even if they just add coin (kuruş is a Turkish currency subunit.)only.
The Turkish Lira reached an all-time high
In the year 2019-2020, the TRY was still declining. The Turkish having problem with the united state the former president Donald Trump threatening to obliterate the TRY.
Following backlash from Washington and Europe D. Trump later warned Turkey over the military operation. After the tweet, the TRY drops 2.1%.
- TRY per 1 USD, max 6.16, min 5.2
- The lira has weakened 9.2% so far in 2019.
- And in 2020, we had almost a similar story.
- TRY per 1 USD, max 8.51, min 5.87
the Turkish Lira reached an all-time high of 8.92 in June 2021 and we are still at the end of the year and we don’t know yet its direction.
How did I realize the depreciation?
The average salary has increased, the citizens were happy enjoying that the normal wage which was around 2500 TRY pass to 3000 TRY.
But for someone who can understand the economy, he can understand that nothing has changed because the rent increases and all other products in the Markets. Products in the market, electronic devices are still expensive.
Like before nothing has changed they are the ones who cost a lot because of their high taxes.
As a student taking the bus to go to the university every day. I saw some Changement about the price it can take 6 months and change after that 3 or 12 months; it has been changing constantly divergent all over the country.
“I am not an economy expert or an economy student ” my own experience with the Turkish lira.
Hello Ben!
Bana göre Türk lirasının bu düşüşünün ana sebebi Politik yaklaşımın evrensellikten git gide uzaklaşması. Kısacası , Dolar Türkiye’ye girmeye korkuyor!