ANKARA, Nov 3 (AFP) - Turkish consumer prices rose 2.22 percent in October from the previous month and 9.86 percent over a year, the state statistics institute said on Wednesday.
Wholesale prices meanwhile increased 3.23 percent in October from September, going up 15.48 percent from October last year, the institute said.
Observers said the figures were higher than expected, but consumer price inflation remained below the government's year-end target of 12 percent, set as part of a tight IMF-backed economic program, for the eighth month in a row.
Cutting Turkey's chronic inflation is a key element of a 16-billion-dollar stand-by deal that Ankara signed with the International Monetary Fund in 2002 in the wake of two severe financial crises.
In 2003, the government beat its inflation target of 20 percent, posting a rate of 18.4 percent.
Encouraged by the progress, Turkey will introduce on January 1, 2005 a new currency, the New Turkish Lira, which will knock out six zeroes from the current money.
The biggest Turkish banknote now circulating -- the 20 million lira (some 13 dollars) -- is the biggest bill in the world.
Ankara is planning to cut inflation down to single digits in 2005.
11/03/2004 15:11 GMT - AFP