Turkey observes hike in baby food, minister says foreign exchange rates to blame

Duvar English

Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) deputy Levent Gök's parliamentary question has revealed that a recent surge in baby food prices in Turkey was caused by the Turkish Lira's devaluation against foreign currencies.

Turkey's official inflation numbers raise eyebrows

Gök noted that baby food prices had gone up in 2017, 2018 and 2019, and asked Turkish Family, Labor and Social Policies Minister Ruhsar Pekcan what triggered the raises.

"Our ministry has noted that the increase in foreign exchange rates and limited domestic production causing the market to be flooded with imported goods are the reasons behind the price increase," Pekcan said in response.

CHP deputy Gök noted that Minister Pekcan's response was in direct conflict with Finance Minister Berat Albayrak's controversial August comments that Turkish people shouldn't worry about the lira's drastic devaluation against the dollar.

"Do you get paid in dollars? Do you have debt in dollars? Do you have anything to do with the dollar?" Albayrak had told news anchor Ahmet Hakan when asked about whether the dollar rate was concerning.

"Minister Pekcan admitted that fluctuations in exchange rates affect people's budget directly, unlike what Berat Albayrak said," CHP MP Gök said.

Finance Minister Albayrak downplays lira's sharp fall via asking 'Are you getting your salaries in dollars?'