Turkey's central bank said today it had lowered its key interest rate for the third time in a row, in line with analysts expectations.
At a policy meeting, the bank lowered the benchmark rate to 39.5% from 40.5% as inflation pressures remained relatively subdued, though still at 33.3% year-on-year in September.
"The underlying inflation trend increased in September," it said, while also noting that "the disinflation process is slowing".
It said restrictive monetary policy would be maintained "until price stability is reached".
In September, the bank had lowered the rate to 40.5%.
Turkey has experienced double-digit inflation since 2019, making life increasingly more expensive for millions of people, after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ordered interest rate cuts in a bid to spur growth.
But the cuts sent the lira plunging on currency markets, further fuelling inflation and leading Erdogan to reverse his unorthodox policy in 2023.
"We expect inflation to fall from 33.3% in September to around 20% by the end of next year," Nicholas Farr at Capital Economics wrote in a research note after the rate cut.
