Turkey's annual inflation at 48.69% in January

Turkey saw a 48.69% annual hike in consumer prices in January, the country’s statistical authority said on Thursday.

The figure was 36.08% in the previous month, according to TurkStat.

The highest annual price increase last month was seen in transportation with 68.89%, followed by food and non-alcoholic beverage (55.61%) and furnishings and household equipment (54.53%).

The lowest annual increases were posted by communication with 10.76%, education with 18.67%, clothing and footwear with 25.32%.

The monthly inflation rate was 11.10% in January.

The highest monthly increase was 21.90% in alcoholic beverages and tobacco among the main groups, while clothing and footwear posted negative inflation -- minus 0.24%.

A group of 20 economists projected an average annual rise of 48.42% in consumer prices in January, an Anadolu Agency survey found last week.