Turkey's Inflation Soars to Nearly 69% Despite Aggressive Rate Hikes

• Turkey's inflation rate rose to 68.5% in March, edging closer to 70% despite interest rate hikes • Core inflation quickened to a record high of 75.2%, up from 72.9% in February • Monthly inflation slowed to 3.16% from 4.5% in February, but still remains high • Central bank raised interest rates to 50% in late March to combat high inflation • President Erdogan signaled he would stick to orthodox economic program after election loss