Apple Turkey has again offered its products for sale at its online store after increasing prices up to 40 percent due to the recent meltdown of the Turkish lira, Turkish media reported on Friday.
Apple, along with several other companies, on Tuesday temporarily stopped selling their products in Turkey in response to the plunge of the lira to a record low of 13.49 to the US dollar.
The beleaguered Turkish lira lost 15 percent against the US dollar after President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan defended recent sharp cuts in interest rates by the central bank, vowing to succeed in his “economic war of independence.”
Virtually all Apple products from smartphones to laptops were re-introduced for sale at increased prices.
The price of the iPhone 13 Pro rose from TL 16,000 to TL 20,000, while the price tag for an iPhone 11 was increased from TL 8,000 to TL 11,000.
The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) blames the weakening lira on “foreign powers launching an economic attack on the country.”
Under pressure from Erdoğan, the central bank cut its policy rate last week by 100 basis points to 15 percent, well below inflation of nearly 20 percent, and signaled further easing.
In power for 19 years, Erdoğan peppers his daily speeches with imagery of the country “rebounding” and growing into “one of the largest economies in the world.”
However, Erdoğan’s AKP is sliding in opinion polls ahead of elections scheduled for no later than mid-2023, reflecting the sharply higher cost of living.