Türkiye’s inflation rate slows for third month

ANKARA

Türkiye’s inflation rate slowed for a third successive month in January, data from the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) have shown.

Consumer prices grew at an annual rate of 57.68 percent in January compared to 64.3 percent in December last year, according to the state statistics agency.

It peaked at 85.5 percent in October, last year -- the highest rate of the last two decades.

“Current data indicate that we have left behind the most challenging period in inflation,” Treasury and Finance Minister Nureddin Nebati wrote on Twitter on Feb 3.

“We will celebrate the 100th anniversary of our Republic as a dynamic and very strong country that has permanently solved the high inflation problem,” the minister said.

Consumer prices rose 6.65 percent month-on-month, the highest figure since April 2022, TÜİK’s data showed.

Excluding the prices of food, energy, alcoholic beverages and tobacco products and gold, the consumer price index rose by 7.07 percent in January from the previous month and increased by 57.05 percent from January 2022, TÜİK said.

Clothing and footwear prices were down by 1.53 percent month-on-month. With a 24.24 percent annual increase, it was the main group that indicated the lowest annual increase.

Food and non-alcoholic beverages prices advanced by 6.62 percent last month from December, which brought the annual increase to 71 percent.

Housing prices rose by 3.31 percent month-on-month for an annual increase of 56.24 percent, according to the data from the statistics authority.

Health services prices exhibited an increase of 18.35 percent from December, marking the largest spike among all items on a monthly basis. The annual increase in health prices was 77.22 percent.

The monthly increase in tobacco products and alcoholic beverages prices was 11.19 percent, while their prices rose by 50.6 percent annually.

Hotel and restaurant prices increased by 12.73 percent, while transport costs were up by 6.29 percent.

The domestic producer price index was up 4.15 percent month-on-month in January for an annual rise of 86.46 percent, the data also showed.