(Istanbul) Inflation reached 64.8% year-on-year in Turkey in December, according to official data released on Wednesday.

The rise in consumer prices, fueled in particular by the almost continuous depreciation of the Turkish lira, stood at 2.9% over one month.

Inflation, which has been soaring again since June, stood at 62% in November.

The increase in prices particularly concerns food products (72%), transport (77.1%), health (79.6%), education (82%) as well as hotels and restaurants (93 .2%), according to the Turkish Statistical Institute.

Although high, the official figures are disputed by independent economists at the Inflation Research Group (Enag), who calculate the rise in consumer prices at 127.2% year-on-year.

In this context, the minimum wage was raised by 49% on January 1, to reach 17,000 Turkish liras, or approximately 520 euros.

Despite regular increases in salaries and retirement pensions, inflation remains a hot topic in Turkey, three months before municipal elections that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan – re-elected at the end of May for a third term – wants to win in Ankara and Istanbul , the country’s two largest cities, passed into the hands of the opposition in 2019.

The Turkish Central Bank, which has raised its key rate from 8.5% to 42.5% since June to try to stem inflation, estimated in late December that monetary tightening is “close to the level required to set the course of disinflation.”