ECONOMIC CONFIDENCE HITS 20̞MONTH HIGH

The economic confidence index increased by 1.54 points to 103.7 in May, compared to the previous month, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat). Thus, the index has reached its highest level since September 2022. Three of five sub-indexes showed a hike versus a decline in one index in May. The highest monthly was seen in the construction index, which jumped 4.3% to 92.2 last month. The consumer and retail trade confidence indexes were up 4% and 0.4% to 91.1 and 116.7, respectively, in May. The services confidence index dipped 0.6% to 117.4, while the real sector confidence remained unchanged at 105.1. The economic confidence index encapsulates consumers’ and producers’ evaluations, expectations, and tendencies about the general economic situation. If it is above 100, it indicates an optimistic outlook about the general economic situation, but a pessimistic outlook when it is below 100.

HUNGER LIMIT HITS TRY 10,362 IN MAY

The monthly food expenditure required for a healthy, balanced, and sufficient diet for a family consisting of four people (hunger limit) amounted to TRY 10,362 in May, according to a survey conducted by the Confederation of Turkish Trade Unions (TURKIS). In addition to food expenditures, the amount needed to secure the necessities of life, such as housing (electricity, water, heating, etc.), clothing, transportation, education, health, etc. (poverty line) totaled TRY 33,752. The monthly cost of living for a single employee rose to TRY 13,439.

CONSUMER CONFIDENCE UP IN MAY

The consumer confidence index rose by 4% from 87.5 to 91.1 in May, compared to the previous month, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat). Thus, the index has reached its highest level since July 2018. All sub-indices posted a hike last month. The index for the financial situation of households at present increased by 2.2% from 69.1 to 70.6 and the financial situation expectation of households over the next 12 months rose by 4.7% from 89.8 to 94.0 in May, month-over-month. The index for general economic situation expectation over the next 12 months climbed by 5.7% from 95.2 to 100.5 and the assessment on spending money on durable goods over the next 12 months surged by 3.1% from 96.1 to 99.1 in the same period. The index is a vital gauge of the economy’s overall performance, indicating people’s sentiments on financial standing and the general economic situation, along with expenditure and saving tendencies. The consumer confidence index is calculated from survey results and evaluated within a range of 0-200, indicating an optimistic outlook when the index is above 100 and a pessimistic one when it is below.

tical Institute (TurkStat). The index rose by 2.43% in April month-over-month, surged by 8.74% compared to December 2022, and climbed by 73.63% on a 12-month rolling average. For the two main sectors – mining and quarrying, and manufacturing – the ND-PPI surged by 34.14%, and 40.21% on an annual basis, respectively. Monthly, the ND-PPI was up by 2.20% for the mining and quarrying sector and by 2.43% for the manufacturing industry.

TURKEY HOSTS 9.5 MILLION FOREIGN TOURISTS IN JANUARY̞ APRIL

Turkey hosted 9.5 million foreign tourists in the first four months of the year, according to the Culture and Tourism Ministry. The number of foreign arrivals rose 27.51% in January-April, compared to the same period of the previous year. Istanbul welcomed over half of all foreign visitors, or nearly 4.77 million in the first four months of the year. It was followed by Antalya with 1.6 million foreign tourists and Edirne with 1.1 million foreign visitors. As for the nationalities of foreign tourists, Russia took first place at 12.1%, or nearly 1.15 million visitors, in the same period, followed by Germany at 10.14%, and Bulgaria at 8.37%. The number of foreign arrivals jumped 29.03% to 3.3 million in April, year-over-year.