While attending the 46th World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey (CBRT) Governor Erdem Başçı said ahead of the first meeting regarding today the 2016 inflation outlook that the CBRT will fight against inflation again this year. Moreover, he stressed that they will have to convince everyone that, according to the Midterm Program regarding inflation, the targeted rate is 7.5 percent for the end of this year, 6 percent for next year and 5 percent in 2018. Başçı added that the government is determined to decrease inflation rates, and it will be a gradual decrease with efforts in various areas. Emphasizing that 2016 will be the start of the fight against inflation, Başçı said steps will continue to be taken in 2017 and 2018 to eliminate this problem.

The package for fighting against inflation will include gradual measures and ideal policies that will be growth-friendly. Başçı said it would not be realistic to assert that inflation can be dropped to 5 percent this year. However, these figures are realistic, and can be achieved through a strong, determined manner. Stressing that by the end of 2012, inflation was 6.2 percent - the lowest in the last 45 years - Başçı said the CBRT's targets are achievable, ones that are bolstered by government decisions. Additionally, both the government and the CBRT are willing to assume responsibility in this respect in order to realize inflation figures of around 5 percent by 2018.

Meanwhile, in the beginning of January, the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) reported that the consumer price index (CPI) increased 7.67 percent on the 12 months' moving averages basis in 2015. The CBRT predicted in late October 2015 that the year-end inflation rate will stand at 7.9 percent after a one-point hike from its earlier prediction.