Turkish capacity utilisation fell 16.4 percentage points year-on-year in December to 64.7 percent, the Turkish Statistics Institute said on Monday, illustrating the rapid slowdown in Turkey's economy. Capacity utilisation, a leading indicator of manufacturing industry and economic growth, was 72.9 percent in November.
Turkish economic growth slowed to a six-year low of 0.5 percent year-on-year in the third quarter. The slowdown has added to pressure on the government to agree a fresh loan deal with the International Monetary Fund to replace the $10 billion accord which expired in May. IMF officials are currently in Ankara for talks with Turkish officials on a new agreement.
The statistics institute statement said inadequate demand in the domestic market was the main reason for companies not working at full capacity in December, followed by poor demand in foreign markets. The volume of production fell 12.2 percent month-on-month in December and was expected to rise 1.7 percent in January, the statistics office said. Sales volume fell 5.0 percent in December and was expected to fall 2.8 percent in January.