Turkey's inflation rate drops in April amid COVID-19

By Tuba Sahin

ANKARA (AA) - Consumer prices in Turkey went up 10.94% in April compared to the same month last year, the country's statistical authority announced Monday.

April's annual inflation rate was down from 11.86% in March amid coronavirus, Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) data showed.

A group of 19 economists polled by Anadolu Agency on Thursday predicted annual inflation figure to drop to 10.79% in April.

Last month, change in consumer price index saw a rise of 0.85% on a monthly basis, official data showed.

Economists expected a 0.72% monthly rise in consumer prices index, ranged between 0.17%, at its lowest, and 1.4%, at its highest.

Last week, Turkey's Central Bank revised its year-end inflation forecast to 7.4% for 2020, down from 8.2%, thanks to a cut in projections of the output gap and food inflation.

The government's year-end inflation target is 8.5% for 2020 as laid out in the government’s new economic program announced last September.