Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has suffered a shock defeat at the ballot box against the main opposition party, amid rampant inflation and the highest borrowing costs since he swept to power more than two decades ago.

Erdogan¡¯s AK Party (AKP) fell behind the main opposition Republican People¡¯s Party (CHP) in Sunday¡¯s municipal elections for the first time ever, according to early results published by state broadcaster TRT.

Support for AKP stood at 35.9% while CHP was leading the race with 37.3%, with nearly 90% of the ballots counted, TRT reported.