A significant slowdown was observed in September in card-based spending, which had grown rapidly during Turkey's high inflation period. According to Interbank Card Center (BKM) data, card-based shopping maintained its growth in both volume and value during the first nine months of the year; however, monthly data pointed to a weakening in consumption appetite at the end of the third quarter.
The number of credit card transactions, which was 8 billion 317 million in the January-September period of 2025, increased by 11.9 percent to 9 billion 309 million in the same period this year. The monetary value of card-based shopping also rose by 41.8 percent, reaching 19 trillion 854 billion liras from 13 trillion 997 billion liras.
In contrast, the monthly picture reversed in September. While the number of card-based shopping transactions was 1 billion 85 million in June, 1 billion 129 million in July, and 1 billion 120 million in August, it fell to 1 billion 90 million in September. Thus, approximately 30 million fewer transactions were made compared to August; the monthly decline was 2.7 percent.
A similar loss of momentum was experienced in spending amounts. The card-based shopping amount, which was 2 trillion 383 billion liras in June, rose to 2 trillion 450 billion liras in July and 2 trillion 451 billion liras in August. In September, however, spending fell to 2 trillion 430 billion liras. A monthly decline of approximately 21 billion liras, or 0.9 percent, was recorded.
The factor that makes the September data noteworthy emerged in the comparison with last year. While the card-based shopping amount increased by 2.4 percent from August to September in 2025, it fell by 0.9 percent in the same period this year. While the decline in the number of transactions remained close to last year's trend, the decrease in nominal spending amount signaled a slowdown in consumer spending.
DECLINE IN OVERSEAS SPENDING AS WELL
Although nine-month totals for purchases made abroad with domestic cards point to strong growth, a decline has been observed in recent months. In the January-September period, the number of overseas shopping transactions increased by 20 percent to 433.3 million, and the spending amount rose by 51.8 percent to 736.1 billion liras.
However, the number of overseas shopping transactions, which was 52.3 million in July, fell to 49.6 million in August and 47.9 million in September. The number of transactions decreased by 8.5 percent in the July-September period. The spending amount also fell from 91.5 billion liras to 85.6 billion liras, a decrease of 6.5 percent.
As for purchases made in Turkey with foreign cards, a return to previous levels has not yet been achieved. The number of transactions, which was 122.6 million in the first nine months of 2024, had fallen by 24.5 percent to 92.5 million in 2025. Although it rose to 105 million transactions in the same period this year, the figure remained 14.4 percent below the 2024 level. The spending amount reached 431.4 billion liras.
News Source: 12punto
