How much did the price of each product increase during Erdogan’s presidency?

‘I am responsible for Türkiye’s economy!’ President Erdoğan promised to reduce inflation to single digits after the elections, but in the last month of the electoral period, price increases continued at full speed.

In addition to the one-month variation in prices, it is worth noting that the prices of some products have increased almost 10 times since 2018, when the presidential system was introduced.

Although the current government largely repeated economic promises made in recent years for the post-election period, the rise in food prices accelerated in the last month of the electoral period.

As Sozcu.com.tr, we note that 11 of the 30 commodities we prepared in early April have risen between 5 and 45 percent in the past month.

According to the table that we elaborated based on the prices of a chain market, the greatest increase was experienced by red meat, cheese, tea and tomato paste products.

Since the 2018 elections, when Turkey switched to the presidential system, there has been an increase of more than 818 percent in basic goods.

Source: Sozcu.com.tr

HE SAID, ‘AUTHORIZE, YOU WILL SEE’, THE PRICES HAVE DOUBLED

President Tayyip Erdogan, recalling the economic turbulence before the 2018 presidential election, said: “Give this brother the authority on the 24th, then you will see how to deal with this and that with this interest.”

After Erdogan’s rule and the transition to the presidential system of rule, price hikes in the bazaar increased exponentially.

For example, while the price of a liter of milk was 2.50 TL before the presidential elections, it increased more than 7 times to 18.50 TL in 5 years. However, these are the prices of branded milk in the market, the price of a liter of branded milk throughout the country starts at 22 liras and goes up to 27 liras.

While the price of 600 grams of white cheese was 13.85 TL in the June 2018 period before the presidential elections, it reached 140 TL in May 2023.

In the last 5 years there have been increases of 300 percent in the prices of nuts and between 547 and 818 percent in the prices of red meat.

THE ELECTION PERIOD HAS ENTERED, THE HEAVY RAIN CONTINUES

When we look at price changes in the last month of the election period, price increases in many products, from minced meat, leg, sausages and salami to dairy products, from tea and tomato paste to dried nuts, are mainly seen in products of red meat. .

250 grams of sausage was seen to cost 105 TL in April, while the product of the same brand and the same weight rose to 153.50 TL in May. While the price of 430 grams of sausage increased from 100 to 120 lire, the weight of the leg of lamb increased from 296 TL to 343 TL.

A kilo of tea, whose weight went from 55 lira to 75.50 lira, increased by 37.2 percent in a month, while a kilo of aged cheddar cheese went from 185 lira to 240 lira in a month; 830 grams of tomato paste increased from 27 lira to 32 lira.

While there was no change in the prices of dried walnuts in May, it is worth noting that walnut prices alone increased by 8.6 percent. Consequently, 150 grams of walnuts increased from 29.90 lira to 32.50 lira.

THE INCREASE IN BEEF DOES NOT STOP FOR MONTHS

According to data from the TZOB, the product with the highest price increase in the markets in April was potatoes with 41.9 percent. The price increase for this product was followed by carrots with 24.9 percent, onion with 18.7 percent, beef with 11.5 percent, and lamb with 11.2 percent.

Explaining the reason for the rise in potato prices as a “transition period”, TZOB stated that the end of potato supplies in Nevşehir and Niğde and the new start of the harvest in Adana also played a role in these rises. It was claimed that ‘changes in supply and demand’ were effective as the reason for the increase in meat prices.

The calf was also the walking champion in the TUIK data. According to TURKSTAT, the product that increased its price the most in March was beef with a monthly increase of 19.9 percent, while this product had increased by 60 percent since the beginning of the year.

Ground beef, whose weight was 180 lire at the beginning of the year, reached 350-400 TL in May.

Even Veysel Günal, regional vice-president of Turkey’s butchers, meat and meat products farmers, traders and artisans, who stated that they were concerned about rising prices, claimed that ‘increases are automatic’.