Turkish annual inflation slid to 64.27 percent in December, official data showed on Tuesday, Reuters reported.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s unorthodox low interest-rate monetary policy and a resulting currency crisis had pushed inflation to a peak of 85.5 percent in October before dipping slightly in November.

Consumer prices rose 1.18 percent month-on-month in December, the Turkish Statistical Institute said, below a Reuters poll forecast of 2.7 percent. The forecast for annual consumer price inflation was 66.8 percent.

The biggest monthly consumer price increases were seen in the health sector, up 5.91 percent, while key food and non-alcoholic drink prices were up 1.86 percent. Transport prices dropped 4.14 percent.

Despite soaring prices, the Turkish central bank has slashed its policy rate by 500 basis points since August to 9 percent, citing an economic slowdown. The easing was part of Erdogan’s economic program prioritizing exports, production, investment and employment.

The Turkish lira was unchanged at 18.7255 against the US dollar after the data was released.
The lira shed 44 percent of its value against the dollar in 2021, most of it during a December currency crisis sparked by rate cuts. It shed another 30 percent in 2022 to historic lows, but held mostly stable in the last quarter.