Turkish firms reduce prices to help fight inflation

ANKARA, Turkey – Turkey’s finance minister says several private sector firms have agreed to reduce their prices to support the government’s effort to bring down painfully high inflation.

Berat Albayrak also announced Tuesday that the government would not raise electricity and gas prices until the end of the year as part of the campaign to rein in consumer prices.

The announcement came after Turkey’s annual inflation rate jumped to nearly 25 per cent in September — up from some 18 per cent recorded in August.

The country has been hit by a currency crisis that saw the lira lose close to 40 per cent of its value since the start of the year over concerns about President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s economic policies and a diplomatic and trade spat with the United States.