Residential housing stretches to the horizon of Istanbul's skyline in Turkey June 13, 2018. REUTERS/Russell BoyceISTANBUL, June 1 - Turkey raised natural gas and power prices on Wednesday and its energy importer blamed a "perfect storm" in global markets, feeding into an inflationary surge in the country that likely hit a 24-year high last month.
Overall inflation of at least 70% and lira weakness have become a major headache for President Tayyip Erdogan ahead of elections set for mid-2023, with polls showing dwindling support for him and his ruling AK Party over the economic strains.Natural gas prices were raised by 30% for households, by 16.3% for gas used in electricity production and by 10.2% for gas used in industry, state energy importer BOTAS said.
Separately, the energy market regulatory authority raised electricity prices by between 15% and 25%, according to the Official Gazette.