Istanbul inflation surges to 20-year high with 63 percent

Ahead of the nationwide inflation data to be released by the government-run Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) on April 4, the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce (İTO) has announced that retail prices in the city jumped 6.29 percent month on month in March for an annual rise of 63.25 percent, the highest in two decades.

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The Istanbul Chamber of Commerce (İTO) on April 1 published the retail and wholesale price indices for March.

According to its calculations, retail prices jumped 6.29% month on month in March for an annual rise of 63.25%, the highest level since 2002.

Wholesale prices in the city jumped 7.65% from February for an annual rise of 65.59%, İTO said.

These indices are used by economists as an indicator of nationwide inflation.

The government-run Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) reported an annual inflation rate of 54.44 percent in February, the highest in two decades, whereas the independent inflation group ENAG put the figure at 123.80 percent.

TÜİK will report the March inflation figures on April 4.