ISTANBUL, Nov. 13 (Xinhua) -- For over two years, the COVID-19 pandemic has weighed on economic activity in Turkey, where retailers expect the e-commerce business could boost desire for shopping in November amid sluggish economy.

The country's major e-commerce firm Trendyol, backed by the Chinese internet giant Alibaba, and online retail website Hepsiburada are offering discounted prices for the "double 11 shopping festival," which fell on Nov. 11.

This shopping bonanza is a boon for online retailers who are aggressively promoting their products on every digital platform.

"I bought myself a leather jacket, which was over 1,000 Turkish liras (around 100 U.S. dollars). It was reduced by nearly 40 percent, so it is a bargain for people like me who have a limited amount of money to spend," Hale Bergin, a teacher, told Xinhua.

This 37-year-old middle school instructor said that due to high inflation and the depreciation of the local currency, the purchasing power of households has been drastically reduced in Turkey.

"It is very convenient to buy something online. Because of the pandemic, our way of shopping has changed from physical to online, and (November) sales offer an opportunity," she added.

Turkey's annual inflation is under 20 percent, and the Turkish currency has lost nearly a quarter of its value since the start of this year.

The Turkish lira has been hitting new record lows, and traded at 9.97 per dollar on Saturday, triggering worries about higher inflation in the country.

According to a recent survey conducted by MetroPoll Research company, for 37 percent of Turks, the cost of living has become unbearable, while another 35 percent say it is causing a serious problem to them.

In the face of sluggish economy, experts expect that November's shopping spree would boost the sales of both physical and online retailers by as much as 60 billion liras (around 6 billion dollars).

Besides the "Double 11" festival, retailers are also eagerly waiting for the Legendary Friday on Nov. 26 and the Cyber Monday on Nov. 29, two other shopping crazes.

"Those special days always give a boost to the retail industry. We are expecting online sales and sales through retailer shops to increase 100 percent to amount to 60 billion liras," said Emre Ekmekci, head of the E-commerce Enterprises Association.

The clothing, cosmetics, consumer technologies and furniture sectors will be the main beneficiaries of the shopping season, according to Ekmekci, who was quoted by local media as saying.

According to official data, in the first half of 2021, Turkey's e-commerce business grew 75.6 percent compared to the same period last year.

The volume of e-commerce is expected to exceed 400 billion liras (40.5 billion dollars) this year, according to analysts. Enditem

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