White goods sales soar over 30 pct in Turkey thanks to tax cuts: Association

ISTANBUL

White goods sales surged 33 percent across Turkey in the first five months of the year due to significant tax cuts in the sector.

According to data from the Turkish White Goods Industrialists Association (TÜRKBESD), Turkey’s white goods exports also saw a 4 percent increase in the January-May period, increasing to 7.69 million units, Reuters reported on June 20. 

A total of 3.68 million units of white goods were sold in Turkey in the same period, TÜRKBESD said. 

In May, white goods sales soared to 749,514 units with a 17 percent increase and exports to 1.7 million units by a 10 percent year-on-year increase. 

The government cut special consumption taxes on a number of electronic home appliances and extended value-added tax (VAT) cuts on property acquisitions to boost domestic consumption in February until the end of April.

Special consumption taxes on air conditioners, refrigerators, washing machines, dish washers, vacuum cleaners and some small home appliances were reduced from 6.7 percent to zero for the acquisitions, according to a cabinet decision published in the Official Gazette on Feb. 3.

VAT on wood, plastic and office furniture was also decreased to 8 percent.

Tax cuts were later extended from the end of April to Sept. 30.