Inflation, industrial output data to be released this week

ANKARA

The Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) will release closely watched nationwide inflation data today for January. 

Most economists forecast that consumer prices increased around 6 to 7 percent percent last month.

The annual inflation rate accelerated from 61.98 percent in November to 64.77 percent in December 2023, but the downward trend in monthly inflation continued.

The month-on-month increase in inflation, which hit as high as 9.5 percent in July last year, eased from 3.28 to 2.93 percent.

Inflation is expected to increase in January due to wage adjustments, particularly the minimum wage, developments in services items subject to time-dependent price setting, automatic tax adjustments, and increases in administered prices, the Central Bank said in the summary of the latest Monetary Policy Committee meeting released on Feb. 1.

The MPC decided to increase the policy rate from 42.5 percent to 45 percent at its meeting on Feb. 25.

The monetary tightness required to establish the disinflation course is achieved and this level will be maintained as long as needed, the bank said in a statement after the rate decision.

The MPC’s next rate-setting meeting to be chaired by new Central Bank governor Fatih Karahan is scheduled for Feb. 22.

The statistics authority will also unveil the industrial production numbers for December and the whole of 2023 on Feb. 9.

Another key macroeconomic data to be released this week is the Treasury’s cash budget figures, which will be out on Feb. 7.