Price stability

Members of the European Central Bank (ECB) expressed confidence that inflation across the Eurozone would continue to decline, though concerns lingered following last month's rate cut amid unexpected economic setbacks, according to minutes from the ECB's latest meeting published by Reuters on Thursday.

Consumer prices rose by 1.64 percent monthly in June, bringing the annual inflation rate to 71.6 percent, down from 75.45 percent in May, data from the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) have shown.

The monthly inflation was lower than the market expectation for a 2.2 percent increase in consumer prices. This was also the lowest monthly inflation recorded in 2024.

The eurozone's annual rate of inflation cooled in June in line with analysts' expectations thanks to a slowdown in food and energy price rises, official data showed .

The European Central Bank will welcome the slowdown in inflation again but the rate has remained stubbornly above the Frankfurt-based body's 2 percent target.

The European Central Bank (ECB) still has "a long way to go" to tame inflation, its president Christine Lagarde said Friday, a day after the body announced its first interest rate cut since 2019.

Türkiye's sole focus is now on price stability, Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek has announced, projecting September inflation to potentially reach 40 percent.

The positive results of the economic program the government is implementing are reflected in inflation expectations, Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek said.

The inflation expectations for the end of 2024 declined from 44 percent in April to 43.64 percent in May, the Central Bank's Survey of Market Participants showed on May 17.

The medium-term economic program is working and yielding the desired results, Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek has said, vowing to further strengthen the program. 

"We are determined to resolve Türkiye's macroeconomic problems," Şimşek said in a speech he delivered at the Uludağ Economy Summit.

Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek has said they will continue to support the Central Bank's fight against inflation with fiscal policy.

The economic program aims to restore price stability and fiscal discipline while addressing macroeconomic challenges, such as reducing the current account deficit, Şimşek stressed.

In a recent report by the National Statistical Institute, Bulgaria's annual inflation rate for March witnessed a notable deceleration, settling at 3% compared to the previous month's figure of 3.0%. This marks the lowest inflation rate observed in the country since July 2021, when it also stood at 3 percent.

Inflation in Turkey soared to a staggering 68.5% year-on-year in March, according to data released by the Turkish Statistical Institute Turkstat. This alarming surge in prices has intensified concerns over the country's economic stability.