The Turkish Statistical Institute (TURKSTAT) has stated in a written announcement that criticizing the official Consumer Price Index (CPI) based on results obtained from a single-question data set reflecting consumers’ inflation perception over the past 12 months is a “manipulative and ill-intentioned” approach.
The announcement addressed reports in some media outlets and social media platforms that allegedly distorted the news regarding the perceived inflation and the divergence from the CPI.
TURKSTAT emphasized in the statement that the CPI is calculated using an internationally standardized system, compiling data from 81 provinces, 228 districts, and 564,710 prices every month.
Regarding the data referred to as “perceived inflation” in the media, the announcement clarified that it is derived from the “consumer tendency survey” conducted by TURKSTAT. The survey involves asking citizens the question, “What percentage do you think consumer prices have increased/decreased in the last 12 months? Please provide an estimated rate.” The microdata from this survey is made available to all researchers through the TURKSTAT Data Research Center.
The statement highlighted that criticizing the official CPI based on results obtained from a single-question data set reflecting consumers’ inflation perception is both manipulative and ill-intentioned. It also noted that it is natural for there to be differences between consumers’ inflation estimates and the official CPI. In European Union countries, the proportional difference between perceived inflation and the CPI can be up to 5 to 6 times, whereas in Turkey, this difference is much lower. At the end of 2023, the annual change rate for the CPI was 64.77%, while consumers’ estimated rate was 96%, according to the statement.
source: aa.com.tr/ prepared by Melisa Beğiç