The minimum wage in Turkeywhich is facing inflation of over 84% year on year, will rise for the third time in a year from January 1 to a net amount of 8,500 Turkish liras (about $455), the Turkish president said today. Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

More than 40% of Turks live on the minimum wage. At the end of December 2021, it was 2,826 Turkish lira, which was just under $300 at the time.

The minimum wage rose to TL 4,253 in January this year and TL 5,500 in July, but is still not enough to live in big cities like Istanbul.

Recognizing that the country is going through a “critical period” with less than six months left before presidential and parliamentary elections due next spring, Erdogan promised “a rapid fall in inflation from the end of the month.” “We are determined to reduce inflation by 20% by the end of next year,” he promised.

The unions were asking for 9,500 Turkish lira per month, but the head of state said no agreement could be reached. “Unfortunately, after a series of meetings, workers and employers could not agree on the amount,” the Turkish president said, considering the compromise “reasonable.”

Turkey’s consumer price growth had already slowed in November for the first time since May 2021 to 84.4% year-on-year from 85.5% in the previous month, according to official data. However, a group of independent economists estimate that real inflation has more than doubled as the Turkish currency has lost nearly 30% of its value over the past year.

^{According to AFP, APE-MPE}