Turkey's central bank raises inflation target

ANKARA: Turkey's central bank has revised its year-end inflation target upwards to 7.6 percent from a previous forecast of 6.6 percent, its governor announced on Wednesday.

Erdem Basci said Turkey's tight monetary policy would be maintained until an improvement in the inflation outlook.

Last week, the bank withstood pressure from Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government and kept its key interest rates unchanged.

Turkey's economy grew by 4.0 percent last year, and analysts warn of a slowdown after months of turmoil and ahead of presidential elections in August.