ISTANBUL — Only 14 percent of Turkish people spared a portion of their income for savings, a research "The Extent of Waste" covered face-to-face inquiries with 1,650 participants between the ages of 18 and 69 from a selection of 26 cities located in Turkey's seven geographical regions, Daily Sabah reported Sunday.
Some 56 percent of the participants cited lack of income as the reason for not being able to save money, whereas 26 percent cited debts.
Speaking on the issue, Customs and Trade Minister Bülent Tüfenkci said savings are the backbone of healthy economic growth. He noted that savings should not only be regarded in terms of financial savings, but also as curbing wasteful consumption, such as in the case of smartphones.
The use of smartphones have reached 84 percent in Turkey, the study said, adding that 14.7 percent were using regular cell phones while only 1.5 percent did not use mobile phones at all.
The research put the average smartphone changing cycle in Turkey at 3.2 years, whereas 7 percent of smartphone owners renewed their devices once a year and 17 percent bought a new smartphone every two years.
In the consumption of bread, a key staple food in Turkey, the study showed 8.6 percent of the population has the tendency of waste, which amounts to 226 grams of bread per person in a week.
The Turkish people have a habit of buying more bread than their household needs, thinking that guests might visit, Tüfenkci said, adding that this approach was hospitable but paved way for wasteful consumption.
Spending on newspapers, books and magazines was described as compulsory expenditure by 57 percent of the public, the study said, whereas a high number of participants defined taking a cab, eating snacks, eating out, going on a vacation or cultural activities as non-compulsory expenditures.
According to the study, the automobile ownership rate stood at 27 percent and the average automobile changing cycle was 6.2 years. Around ten percent of the owners upgrade their vehicles once every two or three years. — SG
