ANKARA, May 3 Reuters Turkish annual inflation slowed to 43.68 in April, official data showed on Wednesday, easing ahead of elections that polls show President Tayyip Erdogan risks losing largely due to a costofliving crisis.

Unorthodox rate cuts sought by Erdogan sparked a currency crisis in late 2021, sending inflation to a 24year peak of 85.51 last year. It fell in December and touched 50.51 by March with a favourable base effect and relatively stable lira.

The consumer price index CPI rose 2.39 in April from a month earlier, the Turkish Statistical Institute said. The official numbers were slightly less than predicted, with a median monthly estimate of 2.60 and an annual forecast of 44 in the latest Reuters poll.

The cost of living crisis has eaten away at household savings and also at Erdogan39;s popularity ahead of the presidential and parliamentary votes on May 14, seen as the president39;s biggest test in his 20year reign.

Some polls show Erdogan trailing his main opponent Kemal Kilicdaroglu.

The base effect that helped lower the annual reading so far this year is expected to wear off in coming months and economists say inflation could rise again. The yearend median estimate was 46.5 in the Reuters poll.

Haluk Burumcekci, of Burumcekci Consulting, predicted that annual inflation could decline until June due to the base effects.

Annual CPI could decrease to at most around 40 levels in the first half of the year and end up in the range of 5055 for the year,…