Official data showed today, Monday, that the Turkish consumer confidence index rose 4.1% to 91.1 points in May, continuing its recovery before the run-off of the presidential elections that will take place this month, after it fell to 80.1 points in March.
A confidence level below 100 reflects a pessimistic outlook, while a reading above 100 indicates optimism, according to data from the Turkish Statistical Institute.
Bankers had reported that Turkish banks had cut back on loans to individuals and postponed decisions to lend to companies in the wake of new regulations imposed by the central bank since Sunday’s inconclusive presidential election, and ahead of the May 28 runoff.
They said that some banks have raised the interest on monthly mortgage loans above 3%, while the interest rate on car loans has reached 4%.
The bankers added that monthly interest rates for personal loans of more than 70,000 pounds ($3,590) have been close to 5 percent since the new regulations were imposed.
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