Court drops case against Inflation Research Group

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A lawsuit filed by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) against the Inflation Research Group (ENAG) has been dismissed.

TurkStat had alleged that ENAG "unfairly attacked" it and intended to damage the institute's reliability.

The hearing was held today (November 3) at the Ankara 13th Civil Court of First Instance.

Prof. Veysel Ulusoy, an executive of the ENAG, represented the group at the hearing.

He denied the allegations, saying that their aim was not to compete with TurkStat and they work for the benefit of the country.

"ENAG measures the inflation on a daily basis, whereas TurkStat makes calculations by carrying out market research three times a month. The difference may arise from this," he said, referring to the vast difference between the calculation of TurkStat and ENAG.

The inflation rates announced by ENAG are usually twice as high as those of TurkStat. In October, the official inflation rate was 85.51 percent, whereas it was 185.34 percent according to the ENAG.

The accuracy of the TurkStat figures, especially those about the inflation and unemployment rate, has long been a subject of debate, with economists and opposition parties accusing the institute of manipulating the figures under the influence of the government.

Announcing its decision, the court dismissed the case.

A previous complaint that TurkStat filed against the ENAG and Ulusoy last year was dismissed as well. (HA/VK)