Aviation Turkish Airlines profit falls despite revenue rising 8% Revenue at Turkish Airlines rose 8 percent year on year in the first nine months of 2024 to $17 billion, driven by increased passenger numbers. The airline flew 65 million passengers from January to September, rising 2 percent annually, according to its latest investor presentation. Passenger revenue climbed 3 percent year on year to $14 billion, […] November 5, 2024
Retail Alibaba-backed Trendyol plans $2bn Gulf investment Trendyol, Turkey’s largest ecommerce platform, is to invest $2 billion in the Gulf region over the next three years. The company is backed by Chinese tech giant Alibaba, and has established a presence across all six GCC countries. It has had rapid growth in Saudi Arabia, now its second-largest market, in particular. Its group president, […] November 5, 2024
Economy Turkish inflation sticks on food and rental costs Turkey’s inflation remains stubbornly resistant to efforts to bring it under control, easing only marginally in October as food and rental pricing pressures continued to build. Annualised inflation dipped to 48.5 percent in October, down slightly from 49.3 percent the preceding month. Month on month, consumer prices were up 2.8 percent, just under September’s 2.9 […] November 4, 2024
Renewable Energy Turkey’s clean energy plan gets $1bn backing Climate Investment Funds (CIF), one of the world’s largest multilateral funds, has backed a $1 billion funding for Turkey’s green energy scale-up. The fund’s board approved a $70 million investment from its renewable energy integration (REI) investment platform, which will contribute to the green expansion of Ankara’s energy system. The CIF funding will raise $790 […] November 1, 2024
Analysis Tax Turkey targets butchers, bakers and tax law breakers Ankara has opened a new front in its war on tax avoidance, as the Turkish finance minister flags a crackdown on small and medium-scale businesses to help balance the budget and increase transparency. Just weeks after announcing a major offensive against tax avoiders in the corporate world, with hundreds of state auditors to be deployed […] October 30, 2024
Economy Turkey considers easing ban on short selling Turkey may partly lift a ban on short selling domestic stocks, a policy initiated almost two years ago, in an attempt to woo foreign investors back to the nation’s share market and reverse a capital exodus. Speaking at the Brookings Institution in Washington DC on October 25, Turkish treasury and finance minister Mehmet Şimşek said […] October 28, 2024
Renewable Energy Saudi lender ICD provides $16m for Turkish solar plant The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) in Saudi Arabia has signed a €15 million ($16.2 million) financing agreement with Turkish company Sampa to support the development and construction of a solar power plant in Turkey. The planned captive solar plant will provide 21 megawatts of energy, reducing Sampa’s energy costs […] October 24, 2024
Economy Turkish businesses face rising insolvency rates The Turkish economy is set to be hit by a rising tide of business insolvencies, with near-record numbers of companies going to the wall, which in turn could result in a domino effect along the business supply chain. While many countries will experience a rise in insolvencies, Turkey will be among the hardest hit this […] October 24, 2024
Renewable Energy Turkey plans a fourfold rise in renewable energy Turkey is planning to quadruple its renewable energy capacity over the coming decade, with investments of $80 billion to boost output and another $30 billion to improve transmission and infrastructure. A new streamlined tendering and approval process was also part of the updated renewables policy announced by Turkey’s energy and natural resources minister, Alparslan Bayraktar, […] October 23, 2024
Real Estate Housing market in Turkey bounces back to 2022 levels Cooling prices and increased potential for strong returns on investment have fuelled a rebound in the Turkish housing market, with sales hitting heights not seen in almost two years. Just under 141,000 residential properties were sold in September, a 37 percent year-on-year improvement, and the best result since December 2022, data from the state statistics […] October 21, 2024
Finance High interest rates cause slump in Turkish VC startup funding Turkey has recorded a sharp drop off in venture capital activity so far in 2024, and a leading analyst says investors are exercising patience and being selective in the startups they buy into. There has been a general slowing of funding for new projects and deals being done in emerging markets in the region, Dubai-based […] October 17, 2024
Finance ADQ buys 96% of Bank Audi’s Turkish unit The Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ has signed an agreement to acquire 96 percent of Lebanon-based Bank Audi’s Turkish subsidiary, Odeabank. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals, including from Turkey’s banking regulation and supervision authority and the competition authority. As part of the deal, Bank Audi and other investors such as the International Finance […] October 16, 2024
Economy Turkey ramps up taxes to spend on defence tech Turkey’s government has proposed a raft of taxes on everything from credit cards to watches in order to fund increased spending on defence research and development. The ruling Justice and Development Party tabled draft legislation for the levies with parliament’s finance committee on October 11. In recent years Turkey has made a priority of developing its […] October 15, 2024
Economy Turkey using AI in crackdown on corporate tax evaders Turkey is to unleash hundreds of auditors and artificial intelligence technology on the country’s leading companies to identify those that are avoiding paying tax on earnings or that are downplaying their revenue to escape higher payouts. Up to 500 inspectors will be deployed in the first stage of a long term programme to stamp out […] October 15, 2024
Transport Turkish contractor to build Uganda-Kenya rail link Turkish construction company Yapi Merkezi has signed a deal with the Ugandan government to build a rail line linking Uganda to Kenya, Ugandan officials announced Monday. Yapi Merkezi will build 272km of a planned 1,700km electric line in a contract worth $3 billion. Construction will start in November, Uganda’s Standard Gauge Railway project coordinator, Perez […] October 14, 2024
Manufacturing Turkey hits major Asian steel exporters with tariffs Turkey’s decision to introduce tariffs on cheap foreign imports of steel has been welcomed by domestic industry experts. Ankara last week moved to protect its domestic steel industry against cheap imports from Asia by imposing taxes on hot rolled steel (HRS) produced in China, India, Japan and the Russian Federation. The tariffs range from 6 […] October 14, 2024
Markets Turkey’s energy bourse Epias to expand and may consider IPO Turkish energy bourse Enerji Piyasalari Isletme AS (Epias) will expand its operations over the next few years and an initial public offering may be considered after the expansion, Turkish energy minister Alparslan Bayraktar said on Wednesday. Speaking at an Atlantic Council conference in Istanbul on Wednesday, Bayraktar said Epias, which currently operates wholesale electricity and […] October 10, 2024
Renewable Energy Turkey to restart auctions to expand renewable capacity Turkey’s energy ministry is set to restart auctions next year for specially designated renewable energy zones to draw global investment, a news report said. The country plans to add 2,000 megawatts of new renewable energy capacity every year until 2035 through these auctions, Bloomberg reported, citing informed sources. In addition, the ministry is exploring incentives […] October 10, 2024
Trade China files trade complaint against Turkey over EV tariffs Beijing has lodged a trade dispute complaint against Turkey at the World Trade Organisation over Ankara’s efforts to stem a potential tide of imported Chinese electric vehicles. China’s launching the first stage of the dispute mechanism (termed a request for consultations) comes more than two years after Turkey first imposed tariffs on Chinese made-EVs, with […] October 9, 2024
Real Estate Turkey’s real estate proposal: turn gold into bricks A senior business leader in Turkey has proposed a radical plan to encourage Turks to take the gold bullion hidden under their mattresses and convert it into real estate. However, many people may be wary of exchanging a solid gold asset for the uncertainty of the country’s property market. With the precious metal appreciating strongly […] October 9, 2024
Economy Turkey SMEs bolstered by $2.3bn global funding The Turkish government has secured $2.3 billion from international institutions to bolster small and medium-sized enterprises and exporters this year, treasury and finance minister Mehmet Şimşek has said. The funding has been secured from various international institutions through Türk Eximbank and development banks to improve financing access for the sector in the midst of ongoing […] October 8, 2024
Oil & Gas Search for oil off Somalia has double motive for Turkey Turkey’s search for oil and gas off the coast of Somalia is not just a bid to free it from a dependence on imports, observers say – the move has a geopolitical aspect, too. On October 5 the 4,800-tonne energy research vessel Oruç Reis sailed through Istanbul’s Bosphorus Strait on the first leg of its […] October 7, 2024
