Ankara, Istanbul rise up against deteriorating economic situation

Thousands marched through Istanbul on Sunday after trade unions denounced the rise of poverty in the country and called for an increase of the minimum wage.

Turkey's net monthly minimum wage of 2,825.90 liras amounted to $380 (€337) in January 2021, but as of Wednesday last week was equivalent to $222 (€197). The annual inflation surged over 20%, decimating the Turks' purchasing power.

Kerim Rota, who is in charge of economic policy at the opposition Future Party, said the lira was suffering the worst monthly devaluation since 1994, and the second-worst in the past 40 years.

Over half of all deposits in Turkish banks are in foreign currencies, mainly dollars. Turkey's official inflation target is 5% but has stubbornly remained in the double digits in the past two years, nearing 20% last month.

Opposition parties say real inflation is much higher than what the official data shows. Given the situation, the opposition has called for an early election ahead of a scheduled vote in June 2023. 

Turkey is currently experiencing a currency calamity due to the Turkish lira hitting record lows against the dollar – exceeding 13 to the US greenback this week, losing nearly 30% in value in the last month alone, and over 43% since the start of the year.