Turkey's central bank has raised its key interest rate sharply, from 17.75 percent to 24 percent, to contain inflation and support the currency after steep declines this year.

The bank's monetary policy committee on Thursday raised the one-week repo rate despite president Recep Tayyip Erdogan's comments earlier opposing any rate hikes.

The Turkish lira began to recover shortly after the rate hike, strengthening by 3.4 percent to 6.18 against the dollar. Earlier in the day, it was down about 3 percent.

In its statement, the central bank noted that the local economy is weakening and inflation is rising.

The rate hike could pinch growth more, but independent experts say it's needed to contain inflation of around 18 percent and support the currency.

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First Published:Sept 13, 2018 5:02 PM IST