Industry ArcelorMittal cuts stake in Turkey’s largest steel maker Global steelmaker ArcelorMittal SA has lowered its stake in Turkey’s largest steel producer, Erdemir, to two percent, Bloomberg reported, citing people with knowledge of the matter. The Luxembourg-headquartered company executed a sale of about half of the shares held in Eregli Demir ve Celik Fabrikalari TAS, commonly known as Erdemir — through two local brokerages. […] February 25, 2024
Energy Turkey and China to build $600m energy storage facility Turkey’s Progresiva Energy Investments has struck a deal with China’s Harbin Electric International to build a $600 million electricity storage facility, according to a media report. The project will be one of Europe’s largest energy storage facilities, Daily Sabah newspaper reported, citing Progresiva’s vice president, Cevdet Yılmaz. He said the initial phase, which will cost […] February 22, 2024
Tech Damac and Vodafone to build $100m data centre in Turkey Edgnex, a data centre subsidiary of Dubai real estate developer Damac, has established a joint venture with Vodafone Turkey to build its first data centre in the Turkish city of Izmir at an estimated cost of $100 million. The six megawatts capacity data centre is expected to be completed next year, as cloud computing gathers […] February 21, 2024
Trade DP World Trade Finance goes global after $400m debut year DP World Trade Finance has revealed plans to expand into Turkey this year before opening in a number of other countries. Working with Etihad Credit Insurance (ECI), the platform, which launched last year in the UAE, India and South Africa, has already financed more than $400 million of non-oil-based trade. Giving borrowers access to finance, […] February 20, 2024
Finance Turkey says inflation will fall by second half 0f 2024 Turkey’s measures to curb inflation will prove effective and begin to decline in the second half of this year, Daily Sabah newspaper reported, citing treasury and finance minister Mehmet Şimşek’s speech at the Turkey-Saudi Arabia Investment and Business Forum in Istanbul. “We will not do anything extraordinary to reduce inflation; conventional monetary policies will be […] February 18, 2024
Trade Turkey targets $30bn trade with Saudi Arabia Turkey intends to increase its trade volume with Saudi Arabia to $30 billion, according to a local media report. Bilateral trade between the two countries reached $6.8 billion in 2023, with investments from Saudi companies making up $2 billion of the total, Daily Sabah reported, citing Turkey’s vice president Cevdet Yılmaz. “We believe investments can […] February 16, 2024
Finance Egypt-Turkey trade hits nearly $6bn in 2023 Trade between Egypt and Turkey reached nearly $6 billion in 2023, Egypt’s trade and industry minister, Ahmed Samir, has disclosed. Egypt’s exports to Turkey rose 28 percent year on year to nearly $3 billion last year. “Turkey has become Egypt’s largest recipient of exports in 2023 and one of its key trading partners,” Egypt Today […] February 14, 2024
Analysis Trade $112bn of trade with India ‘ready to be tapped’ Untapped trade opportunities between India and the Middle East, North Africa and Turkey could be worth more than $112 billion, research has found. An HSBC report, which analyses data from the UN/WTO International Trade Centre, estimates that there is a $61 billion export gap for Indian companies in the key markets of the UAE, Saudi […] February 12, 2024
Analysis Construction Turkey’s construction sector struggles to build Turkey’s construction sector is labouring under the weight of rising material and borrowing costs, fuelled by demand following last year’s devastating earthquakes, but medium-term plans for urban renewal could help to build momentum. January’s sectoral confidence index from the Turkish Statistical Institute – Turkstat – showed the industry as the only major sector to remain […] February 12, 2024
Infrastructure EU grants $431m to Turkey for post-quake recovery The European Union (EU) has signed an agreement with Turkey to provide a €400 million ($431 million) grant to support development following the devastating earthquakes in early 2023. “In the history of this post-disaster relief instrument, this is the largest sum ever awarded to a candidate country. This is also the first time that Turkey […] February 9, 2024
Finance Turkey’s lira flat ahead of quarterly inflation report The Turkish lira was flat against the dollar on Thursday, and hovered near a record low hit earlier this week, as investors kept to the sidelines ahead of a quarterly inflation report in which the central bank is expected to raise its forecast. The lira stood at 30.6050 against the greenback at 05:46 GMT, slightly […] February 8, 2024
Industry Turkey’s drone maker starts building Ukraine plant Turkish defence company Baykar has started building a factory near Kyiv that will employ around 500 people, where it will manufacture either its TB2 or TB3 drone models, the company’s chief executive told Reuters. Turkish-made Bayraktar drones have gained prominence globally after being used by Ukraine’s military to thwart Russian forces by destroying armoured vehicles […] February 7, 2024
Oil & Gas Turkey and Russia to discuss gas and grain deals Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin are to discuss a gas hub project and Black Sea grain exports during their upcoming meeting in Ankara, according to a media report. Although foreign minister Hakan Fidan did not confirm a date for the trip, reports suggest Putin will visit Ankara next week, Daily […] February 7, 2024
Aviation UAE’s Ghitha invests $220m in Turkish cargo airline Ghitha Holding, a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi conglomerate International Holding Company (IHC), has announced an investment of more than $220 million in Turkish cargo airline MNG. The company said it has entered into a share purchase agreement to buy a 44 percent stake in MNG Havayollari ve Tasimacilik. The deal was made through its wholly […] February 6, 2024
Economy Turkey’s inflation rises to 64.86% in January Turkey’s annual inflation rate reached 64.86 percent in January and increased 6.7 percent month on month, as the country’s new central bank governor pledged to ensure disinflation. Hotels, cafes and restaurants saw the highest annual increase of 92.27 percent, followed by health (78.57 percent) and education (79.81 percent), the latest data from the Turkish Statistical […] February 6, 2024
Analysis Infrastructure Turkey quakes still taking a toll on economy one year on A year on, the twin earthquakes that devastated much of Turkey’s south continue to send tremors through the nation’s economy. The quakes on February 6 2023 inflicted a $103.6 billion hit on the Turkish economy, according to the Strategy and Budget Department of the Office of the President. Some $85 billion of this was the […] February 6, 2024
Banking & Finance Turkey names new central bank governor Turkey’s first female central bank governor, Hafize Gaye Erkan, has resigned, citing personal reasons. Deputy governor Fatih Karahan was appointed as her successor on Saturday, local newspapers reported, citing the official gazette. “A major reputation assassination has recently been organised against me,” Erkan said in a post on the social messaging platform X. She added […] February 5, 2024
Infrastructure Turkey power retailer gets $100m to upgrade network The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will provide a loan of up to $100 million to a Turkish electricity distribution and retail company to upgrade its power network in the country’s earthquake-hit region. The Turkish company Enerjisa Enerji will use the investments to modernise and reconstruct its distribution network in the Toroslar region. […] February 2, 2024
Tourism Turkey’s tourism revenue hits record $54.3bn in 2023 Turkey’s tourism revenues hit a record high of $54.32 billion in 2023, rising 17 percent from $46.48 billion in 2022, Turkish Statistical Institute data showed. Individual travellers contributed $41.61 billion to the total tourism income, while package tours added $13.25 billion. The official data showed that in the fourth quarter of last year tourism revenues […] February 1, 2024
Leisure & Hospitality Top Turkish holiday resort reports hotel rates at record highs The Turkish holiday destination Antalya saw hotel rates in 2023 rise 19.35 percent year on year. The average daily rate (ADR) for hotels in Antalya reached €172.1 ($186.21), Hürriyet Daily News reported, citing data from the Hotel Association of Türkiye (TÜROB). The revenue per available room (RevPAR) rose 8 percent year on year to €96.8. […] January 31, 2024
Economy Turkey hikes rate to 45% to maintain disinflation Turkey’s central bank has raised its benchmark one-week policy rate by another 250 basis points to 45 percent, continuing with its aggressive monetary tightening policy. “The monetary tightness required to establish the disinflation course is achieved and that this level will be maintained as long as needed,” the central bank governor Hafize Gaye Erkan said […] January 26, 2024
EXCLUSIVE Finance UK steps up hunt for Mena projects with £50bn budget The UK’s export credit agency is stepping up its search for “transformational” projects to finance across the Middle East and North Africa and has a potential war chest of about £50 billion ($63 billion). Since 2018, UK Export Finance has completed £11 billion worth of business and delivered thousands of jobs for UK businesses related […] January 25, 2024
