05.12.2025 12:25
The Minister of Treasury and Finance, Mehmet Şimşek, announced the inflation figure for 2025, which will affect the New Year raise for millions of workers and retirees. Şimşek stated that the inflation rate for 2025 is likely to be around 31 percent.
The Minister of Treasury and Finance, Mehmet Şimşek, gave messages regarding the economy in his speech in Istanbul.
Stating that reducing inflation is one of their top priorities, Minister Şimşek noted that inflation will continue to decrease. He mentioned that inflation will likely finish at around 31 percent in 2025.
THE TARGET FOR 2026 IS BELOW 20%
Regarding the issue, Şimşek said, "As of November this year, we have decreased to around 31 percent, and we will probably finish this year around this level, but our target for next year is to bring it below 20 percent. Rent inflation, education inflation, that is, service inflation is still high, but it has dropped from 97 percent to 44 percent."
"THERE IS AN IMPROVEMENT OF MORE THAN 250 BILLION DOLLARS IN TURKEY'S BALANCE SHEET"
The Minister stated that they have increased net reserves by 118 billion dollars in the last 2 years and that Turkey's risk premium has reached its best level in 7.5 years. Şimşek also noted that they have reduced the KKM by 143 billion dollars, saying, "There is an improvement of more than 250 billion dollars in Turkey's balance sheet."
"WE ARE CONSIDERING PUBLIC PROCUREMENT REFORM"
Speaking about reform preparations, Şimşek said, "We are considering public procurement reform. We want to eliminate exceptions; we have prepared the 'public procurement reform' bill and submitted it to our party group. We will make reforms that will make financial rules effective. Starting from next year, we will offer a support program as a pilot project to families below a certain income level. This is also a preparation for the era of artificial intelligence. We will start implementing this support program from 2027."
HOW DOES INFLATION AFFECT EMPLOYEES' SALARIES?
Inflation essentially means the general price level of goods and services rising. As prices increase, even if employees' salaries remain the same, their purchasing power decreases. Therefore, the announced inflation figures are among the most critical determinants of salary increases.
SALARIES OF CIVIL SERVANTS AND RETIREES ARE INDEXED TO INFLATION
In Turkey, the 6-month inflation difference is directly taken into account in the salary increase of civil servants and retirees. If inflation exceeds the target, an increase is made by the difference. Therefore, the inflation announced by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) every month is of great concern to public employees.
INFLATION BARGAINING IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR
Although salary increases in the private sector are not legally tied to a specific inflation rate, employers generally base them on the annual inflation rate. During periods of rising inflation, employees negotiate for higher salary increases with employers to maintain their purchasing power.
MINIMUM WAGE IS DIRECTLY AFFECTED
When determining the minimum wage, inflation is one of the fundamental criteria. If inflation rises rapidly during the year, discussions about interim wage increases come to the fore, and the demands of the labor sector increase.