Turkey's annual inflation rate up in January

By Muhammed Ali Gurtas

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey's annual inflation rate was 9.22 percent in January, according to a Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) report released Friday.

Consumer prices in Turkey rose 9.22 percent year-on-year in January from 8.53 percent in December, TurkStat said.

Meanwhile, monthly inflation also increased by 2.46 percent in January over the previous month, higher than experts' predictions.

TurkStat’s report also showed the highest monthly increase was in food and beverages -- 6.37 percent -- while the only price decline was seen in clothing and footwear, with a 6.99 fall on a monthly basis.

The institution said the highest annual increase was 22.90 percent in alcoholic beverages and tobacco among all sub-indices.

"The inflation rate will fluctuate between 6.6 percent and 9.4 percent through to the end of 2017 and the mid-point will be 8 percent," Turkey’s Central Bank governor said on Tuesday.

A panel of 22 experts questioned by Anadolu Agency predicted on average a 1.73 percent hike in consumer prices in January on a monthly basis and 8.44 percent on an annual basis.