Türkiye’de Kobi Kredileri ve Büyüme İlişkisi (2007-2021)

Abstract

"SMEs" are economic units or enterprises that employ less than 250 people and have a net revenue or balance sheet of less than 250 billion TL. According to the data for 2020, 99.76% of all firms operating in Turkey are SMEs. Moreover, 72% of all workers in Turkey work there, and they produce 42.75% of all production. This means that SMEs are an engine of the production and economy of Turkey. This study considers the relationship between SME loans and economic growth with the quarterly data from 2007 - 2021. GDP was employed as the dependent variable, while total SME loans in the banking sector in Turkey, other loans, the weighted average interest rate for banks' TL commercial loans, and the financial development rate were employed as independent variables. The method employed in the study is the Robust Least Square Method S-Estimation, as extreme conditions and outliers exist during the study period (e.g., the Global Crisis and COVID-19 Pandemic). A dummy variable was added to the model for these conditions. The analysis results show a positive and statistically meaningful relationship between SME loans and economic growth. Similarly, the relationship between GDP and other loans is positive and statistically meaningful. Moreover, the financial development's relationship with GDP is also statistically meaningful but in a negative direction. These argumentative findings are also reflected in the literature as well. The relationship between GDP and credit interest rate is negative and statistically meaningful. While the negative relationship between the dummy variable and GDP indicates that Global Crisis and COVID-19 Pandemic influenced the economy negatively, the positive relationship between GDP and SME loans indicates that SMEs need to be supported, and it is useful and productive for the Turkish economy.