Turkish Central Bank maintains inflation forecast for 2023, 2024

By Tuba Sahin

ANKARA (AA) - Türkiye's Central Bank on Thursday kept the country's year-end inflation forecasts for both 2023 and 2024.

Consumer prices are projected to rise 22.3% this year and 8.8% next year, the bank's governor told a news conference marking the release of the bank’s first quarterly inflation report in 2023.

Noting that the bank sees the inflation forecasts as an intermediate target, Sahap Kavcioglu referred to the bank's emphasis on Turkish liras over foreign currency, saying: "We will continue to use all the tools of our liraization strategy to support an inflation path consistent with our forecasts."

The bank also said it expected the slowing trend in global economic activity to continue this year, and that the recent moderate course of commodity prices, led by energy, will remain in place in the upcoming period.

The bank also maintained its food inflation estimate of 22% for 2023, and 11.5% for 2024, in line with the previous forecast.

The liraization strategy was launched in 2022 to reinforce use of the Turkish lira in the country, as part of the Turkish economy model, which envisages investment, employment, production, and export-oriented development for the continuation of sustainable growth.

The Turkish lira deposit ratio rose from 35.6% in January to 55.1% at the end of 2022.

The figure is aimed to hit 60% in the first half of this year, as laid out the country's monetary policy and liraization strategy for 2023.