Sales of cars and light commercial vehicles in Turkey jumped dramatically on an annual basis in February as an economic recovery gathered pace and interest rates edged downwards, the Ahval news website reported.
Car sales surged by 96 percent year-on-year to 37,727 units in February, the Automotive Distributors Association (ODD) said in a statement. Sales of light commercial vehicles climbed by 66 percent to 9,395 units, the association reported.
Turkey’s automobile market has expanded at lightning speed since the launch of a government-led campaign to lower the cost of car loans and eradicate the lingering impact on the industry of a currency crisis in 2018. The central bank has supported the initiative, slashing interest rates to 10.75 percent from 24 percent in July.
Sales of cars and light commercial vehicles rose a combined 89 percent to 47,122 units in February. They increased by 90 percent year-on-year to 74,395 units in the first two months of 2020.