According to the monthly consumer tendency survey released by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK), the consumer confidence index*, which stood at 80.75 points in April, increased by 3.12 percent month on month in May rising to 83.28 points.
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According to the indices based on individual questions concerning the consumer tendency, in May 2009 the index for the general current economic situation increased by 7.3 percent month on month to 67.29 points, while the index for the general economic situation in the next three months increased by 6.82 percent to 75.64 points.
Meanwhile, in the period in question, the index for the probability of buying durable goods in next six months increased by 4.94 percent to 17.32 points, the index for the probability of buying a car in the next six months decreased by 0.4 percent to 8.80 points and the index for the probability of buying or building a home in the next 12 months increased by 9.01 percent to 9.04 points.
On March 16, 2009, the Turkish government reduced the Special Consumption Tax (OTV) for products of various industrial sectors, including automobiles, home appliances and electronics, for a period of three months in order to stimulate consumer demand which had been heavily affected by the economic downturn. This move has greatly boosted the clearing out of inventories.
On June 16, 2009, the government announced that the reduction in the OTV for some sectors, including automotive and home appliances, would be prolonged until the end of September.
* When the index is above 100 it indicates an optimistic outlook, when it is equal to 100 it indicates a neutral outlook, and below 100 it points to a pessimistic outlook.