China major target market for Turkish Asia-Pacific strategy
Posted by meb at September 10th, 2007
State Minister for Foreign Trade Kürşad Tüzmen has said China is Turkey’s principle target in its strategy to develop trade with the rapidly growing Asia-Pacific region countries.
“With the help of the preferential trade system and our program to enter and settle in the Chinese market, we will hit great figures in trade volume with this country,” he said on Sunday.
The first steps to begin a special approach toward the growing giant were taken in September 2006 when Tüzmen “raided” China with several hundred businessmen to strike deals and establish a strong base for future trade.
Tüzmen was in China yesterday to officially open the Turkish area of the 11th Chinese International Investment and Trade Fair (CIFIT). Chinese Deputy Minister of Commerce Ma Xiuhong accompanied Tüzmen to the site and participated in the opening ceremony. Tüzmen later visited and addressed the crowd at the “Seminar on Turkish-Chinese Investment and Trade Cooperation,” where he stressed the importance of increasing commercial relations via direct or partnered investments by the companies of each country.
There he underlined that Turkey now has bigger foreign trade targets — $200 billion exports and $250 billion imports in 2013 — and wider horizons. “Success in such big projects is possible by hoisting sails to large economies and markets like China,” he said.
Since the initiation of the China pillar in the Asia-Pacific strategy in September 2006, exports to China have increased by 50 percent every month, Tüzmen noted, adding: “If this pace can be maintained, our exports to China will exceed $1.2 billion by the end of this year.”
The minister also mentioned attempts by the Chinese to improve trade with Turkey. “China, which has realized gigantic investments in numerous countries, decided to establish a special investment zone in Turkey and directed some of its public companies to this aim. China also counted İzmir, İstanbul and Ankara among the world’s most suitable cities for investment. We expect them to take Mersin into consideration in addition to these three cities,” Tüzmen asserted.
Tüzmen further discussed the Chinese-Turkish consortium to implement the Ankara-İstanbul Fast Train Project. China is contributing to the financing of this grand project, he stated. Chinese Eximbank is giving Turkey $720 million to be used in the installation of the fast train system between Turkey’s two most important cities. Turkey’s strategy for China includes taking it as a base country for the whole region, the minister said.
source: Today’s Zaman
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