ISTANBUL: Forex and precious metal holdings of Turkish locals rose to another record high of $228.17 billion as of Nov. 20, data from the central bank showed on Thursday, as Turks remained wary of Ankara's pledges of economic reform.

President Tayyip Erdogan's promises of economic reforms earlier this month led to a rally in the lira, driven mainly by foreigners who were optimistic that a more orthodox economic policy would be adopted.

However, locals continued to buy precious metals and hard currencies due to a lack of confidence in the lira, which has driven the rise in non-lira holdings since a currency crisis in 2018.

Separately, data showed the central bank's gross forex reserves rose to $43.71 billion as of the same date, from $40.37 billion a week earlier.