Turkey’s lira plunges as tensions escalate between US and Turkey over consulate staffer arrest

Turkey’s lira plunges as tensions escalate between US and Turkey over consulate staffer arrest: Turkey and US both decided on Sunday to suspend visa services for the other in “a sharp escalation of tensions that sent the lira down more than 6% against the USD,” Bloomberg reports. The decision came after a Turkish national and US consulate staffer in Istanbul was arrested for his alleged implication in the attempted coup against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in 2016. The US government criticized the arrest in a Thursday statement to little reaction from Turkish authorities. The move sent the lira spiraling to its “softest level since January 30,” the Financial Times notes (paywall).