Analysis Tourism Turkey cruising towards growing tourist trade Turkey is working hard to improve its appeal as a holiday cruise destination, adding new ports of call for visiting ships and developing broader itineraries to take advantage of the country’s 8,000 kilometre-long coastline and diverse historical and natural beauty spots. With advance bookings already up on last year, Turkey’s tourism industry is bullish about […] May 18, 2025
Analysis Mining Turkey keen to cash in on rare earth potential Turkey plans to become one of the world’s leading suppliers of rare earths, seeking to parlay its extensive reserves into a position of international strength by investing in extraction and processing while also looking to develop downstream industries. In 2022 Ankara identified a massive mineral deposit in the central Turkish province of Eskişehir containing 10 […] May 9, 2025
Agriculture Turkey’s red meat output tumbles as costs keep climbing Rising costs and falling returns have contributed to a drop in red meat production in Turkey, threatening the government’s plan to halt imports by 2028. Red meat production fell by almost 12 percent in 2024, according to the state statistics agency Turkstat. Just 2.1 million tonnes were processed last year, down on the 2.38 million […] May 7, 2025
Economy Turkey’s annual inflation falls but target remains distant Turkey’s annualised inflation has fallen for the eleventh month in a row, though the rate of decline is slowing, reducing the chances that the central bank will hit its year-end target. The consumer price index (CPI) rose 3 percent in April while the annual rate of inflation declined to 37.9 percent, according to data issued […] May 6, 2025
Trade Turkey trade deficit widens paced by consumer goods imports Turkey’s trade deficit widened in the first quarter by 11 percent, paced by a jump in the import of consumer goods and muted growth in high value exports, fresh government data show. Imports in the three months to March 31 rose more than 4 percent to almost $88 billion, while exports expanded by less than 3 […] May 2, 2025
Tourism Turkish tourism hits record highs in first quarter Despite economic and political turmoil, foreign visitors flocked to Turkey in record numbers in the first quarter of the year. Although the figures provided a welcome boost to revenue and expectations for growth through the rest of the year, some commentators have warned that future earnings may be weighed down by an overpriced local currency. […] May 1, 2025
Economy Risks for Turkey’s economy despite stable credit rating Turkey’s economic outlook has retained its “stable” rating, according to ratings agency S&P Global, despite heightened political and economic uncertainty since March, with more downside risk than upside opportunity. The agency had raised Ankara’s sovereign debt rating to its present BB-, just below investment grade, in November, the second increase in 2024. It affirmed that […] April 29, 2025
Development Turkey hopes for funding surge from global institutions Turkey is hoping to attract more than $40 billion in project funding from global financial institutions over the next three years to increase environmental investment, boost infrastructure and reduce risk from natural disasters. Treasury and finance minister Mehmet Şimşek said on April 26 he anticipated Turkey would receive $41 billion in low-cost, long-term finance from […] April 29, 2025
Tourism Turkey’s domestic tourism sector heats up Turkey’s domestic tourism sector surged in 2024, with more Turks holidaying at home than ever before, shrugging off high inflation and economic uncertainty by taking to the road in record numbers. Between them, Turkey’s 85 million citizens took 67 million domestic trips last year, an increase of 9 percent on 2023, according to state statistics […] April 28, 2025
Manufacturing Factory activity in Turkey falls to lowest in two years Turkey’s manufacturing sector has posted its fifth monthly decline in activity, reflecting a slowdown in domestic demand and the impact of political and economic instability. The manufacturing capacity utilisation rate – how much a factory’s full potential is being used – fell to 74.3 percent in April, according to a report issued this week by […] April 27, 2025
Analysis Construction Quake lends urgency to Istanbul rebuild programme Istanbul, Turkey’s economic hub, has received a timely reminder that it is at the centre of a high-risk earthquake zone, having been rattled by a tremor of magnitude 6.2 on Wednesday. The hope is that the quake will jolt the city authorities into action to speed up a slow-moving building renewal scheme. Damage from the […] April 24, 2025
Retail New ecommerce rules spur cost-benefit debate in Turkey Turkish officials have denied media reports that they were about to block access to the popular Chinese online shopping platform Temu after it allegedly failed to comply with new regulations governing ecommerce. This has highlighted the debate in Turkey around the cost and benefit for the multi-billion dollar industry following this month’s introduction of the […] April 24, 2025
Tech Turkish startup funding plunges in first quarter Uncertainty in the Turkish economy and government budget cuts are weighing on the country’s startup environment, with venture capital funding for new projects falling in the first quarter to their lowest in more than 18 months. Turkish technology startups attracted $58 million in the three months to March 31, almost 50 percent down on the […] April 23, 2025
Tourism Turkey takes the plunge into swimming tourism Blue water swimming enthusiasts drawn to the Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits are providing a boost to the economy April 18, 2025
Banking and Finance Turkey raises interest rates for first time in a year Turkey’s central bank raised its key lending rate for the first time in a year on Thursday, reversing a steady decline this year, on concerns of higher inflation in the coming months. The bank’s monetary policy committee (MPC) increased its one-week repo auction rate to 46 percent on April 17 from 42.5 percent, the rate […] April 18, 2025
Real Estate Turkish property sales jump may temper on market turmoil Turkish property sales rose by 20 percent in the first quarter, but recent political unrest and economic uncertainty from mid-March onwards may weigh on the market. The number of property transactions rose to 335,786 in the three months to March 31 compared with the same period last year, according to data issued this week by […] April 16, 2025
Banking and Finance Turkey’s central bank records second-biggest ever loss The Central Bank of Turkey lost 700 billion lira ($18 billion) last year, its second biggest loss ever after a record 2023. The loss came as the central bank made efforts to defend the Turkish lira while at the same time offering depositors higher interest rates on the local currency versus other currencies, paving the […] April 16, 2025
Economy Tensions in trade and politics weigh on Turkish money markets Political instability in Turkey and tariff-driven global trade tensions are weighing on Turkish money markets as international investors move out of local debt and locals buy up foreign currency. In the three weeks ending April 4, non-resident investors sold $8.5 billion of Turkish debt, according to a report released by the central bank last week. […] April 15, 2025
Agriculture Frost and snow deal blow to Turkey’s biggest export crops Turkey’s agriculture sector is reeling after much of the country was struck by hard frosts last week, damaging vital crops such as hazelnuts and apricots and jeopardising export income. Temperatures plunged between April 10 and 12, with lows of -15C in some regions. More than a third of Turkey’s 81 provinces had frosts and snowfall. […] April 14, 2025
Oil & Gas Turkey expands African energy foothold with Somali agreement Turkey is expanding its presence in the Somali energy sector after striking a deal to conduct preliminary surveys for oil and gas deposits across the African country as it seeks to reduce its reliance on energy imports, notably from Russia. Turkish energy minister Alparslan Bayraktar and his Somali counterpart Dahir Shire Mohamed this week signed […] April 11, 2025
Trade Turkey looks for positives from tariff fallout Turkey is eyeing a potential upside in its international trade as Donald Trump takes on China and much of the rest of the world in a trade war. As one of the countries initially hit with Trump’s baseline 10 percent tariff, many in Turkey had nonetheless forecast export doors to the US would open for […] April 11, 2025
Food & Drink Turkish fish processors adapt as taste for sushi grows Turkish seafood processors are expanding their product range to cash in on new tastes, eating habits and markets, adding the Japanese delicacy sushi to their offerings. Not so long ago sushi was a rarity in Turkey. It featured on the menus of a few Japanese restaurants in tourist areas catering to foreign visitors rather than […] April 11, 2025
