Istanbul Chamber of Commerce faces criticism over inflation calculation error

The Istanbul Chamber of Commerce (İTO) is facing criticism over a significant methodological error in its Consumer Price Index (CPI) calculations. Economic analyst Alaattin Aktaş reported that İTO has been utilizing month-end prices rather than the standard practice of comparing monthly average prices to determine inflation rates.

This discrepancy was highlighted by diesel fuel prices in August. While İTO’s methodology suggested a 4.3% decrease in diesel prices, the actual monthly average price showed an 11.7% increase. Because diesel is a high-weight item in the inflation basket, this error resulted in an August inflation rate of 1.66% that does not accurately reflect economic reality. Experts suggest this error likely affects most other items in the index as well.