Turkey Financial News

Posted by meb at November 27th, 2008

A total of 1,800 employees lost their jobs as Turkey’s Tekerekoglu Tekstil, the world’s third largest home textile manufacturer and producer of the Elegant brand, suspended production due to financial problems stemming from the worsening global crisis.

Tekerekoglu Tekstil, which has some $42 million of debt, sold two of its five factories in order to pay its credit loan, Dogan News Agency (DHA) reported on Thursday. The remaining three factories together with the company’s other real estate assets will also be sold, the report said.

A total of 1,800 workers lost their jobs after production was suspended in the company’s five factories, the report said, adding that decision was taken due to the fall off triggered by the recent global financial crisis. (more…)

Posted by meb at November 27th, 2008

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) expects serious fiscal adjustments from Turkey for a possible program and no agreement over content has been reached, Turkish Economy Minister Mehmet Simsek said on Thursday.

“If we can convince the IMF and reach an agreement over the terms and content, we will make a program with the IMF. There is still dispute over content,” Simsek said in his speech delivered at the 60th Turkey-EU Joint Parliamentary Committee meeting in Ankara.

Certain progress was made in the ongoing technical talks with the IMF, Simsek also said.

Turkey’s business leaders have been calling for an IMF loan deal to limit the fallout from a global financial crisis which has already forced Ukraine, Hungary, Iceland and Serbia to seek IMF help. (more…)

Posted by meb at November 27th, 2008

European scrap paper sellers turn toward Turkey as China puts the brakes on scrap paper imports. As they reduce prices drastically, Turkish paper producers find it hard to compete with Western firms.

China import brakes hit Turkish producers Turkish paper producers face tough times as China, one of the world’s top paper consumers, put brakes on importing scrap paper from Europe due to the crisis.

With the halt of exports to China, European scrap paper sellers have directed their stocks to the nearest market, which is Turkey. European sellers have also reduced the per ton price of paper from 155 euros to 40 euros. (more…)

Posted by meb at November 27th, 2008

Kuveyt Türk, the first and only participation bank authorized to make transactions in Turkey’s gold exchange, posted $69.4 million in profits in the first nine months of the year, a statement from the bank has said.

The bank’s profits in the first three quarters of 2008 represented a 53 percent increase over the same period last year, while its equity has reached $541 million, up by 71 percent compared to last year. Its assets also climbed by 28 percent, reaching $4 billion. (more…)

Posted by meb at November 27th, 2008

Europe’s largest engineering conglomerate, the German firm Siemens, is making a new investment in Turkey, signaling their faith in the Turkish market. Siemens Turkey CEO Hüseyin Gelis said yesterday that the company was investing some 100 million euros in the Gebze district of Kocaeli. “We are establishing a new factory in Gebze because we attach importance to the Turkish market,” Gelis noted.

Gelis said the factory would be one of the most modern factories in Turkey and in all of Europe. “We will continue our growth in Turkey; we are not only growing in Gebze but also in other regions of Turkey,” he said. Regarding the ongoing global financial turmoil, Gelis stated that the crisis would affect short-term investments negatively, but added that Siemens would continue its long-term investments in Turkey. He underlined that they were well prepared for the crisis, having taken precautionary measures, adding that they gave the utmost importance to following a balanced financial policy. With around 400,000 employees, Siemens is a global powerhouse in electronics and electrical engineering, operating in the industrial, energy and healthcare sectors. (more…)

Posted by meb at November 26th, 2008

Finance Minister Kemal Unakıtan has called on entrepreneurs from the Gulf region to invest in Turkey rather than developed markets, which are in the grip of the ongoing financial crisis. “Otherwise your money will sink,” he warned a group of Saudi businessmen.

Speaking at a meeting of the Turkey-Saudi Arabia Joint Economic Committee in Ankara yesterday, Unakıtan focused primarily on the importance of enhancing mutual commercial relations and improving cooperation between Turkey and Saudi Arabia. “In these sensitive days, it has become more important to boost cooperation and increase trade between the two countries,” he said. He urged entrepreneurs to come and invest in Turkey rather than putting their money in European and US markets, since Turkey has become a safe haven for entrepreneurs by having so far stayed clear of the adverse effects of the turbulence. “You will not regret investing in Turkey,” he stressed. (more…)

Posted by meb at November 26th, 2008

Automotive exports, which have long been the engine driving Turkey’s export boom, are now being threatened by the increasingly negative effects of the ongoing global financial crisis.

Industry exports have entered a period of negative growth after enjoying a long period of continuous growth. Auto exports decreased by a record high of 42 percent during the period between Nov. 1 and Nov. 23 compared to the same period a year previous. According to Uludağ Exporters’ Union (UİB) data, the stagnation seen in European markets in the second half of this year is starting to appear in Turkey, causing export growth to shudder to a halt.

At the beginning of the year, things were far brighter than now. Turkey’s auto exports increased by 79 percent in January compared to the same month in 2007, amounting to $2.2 billion, with healthy export numbers staying above the $2 billion mark until August. Steady growth ceased after the summer, with the emerging global financial crisis on the horizon. Figures for August and beyond have been characterized by fluctuating and unpredictable demand. (more…)

Posted by meb at November 26th, 2008

Lukoil Eurasia Petrol JSC, a subsidiary of Russia’s largest oil company, Lukoil, has completed the final steps to purchase Akpet, a Turkish oil distribution company.

Lukoil agreed to acquire Akpet in July. In a statement yesterday, Lukoil President Vagit Alekperov announced that his company will pay $555 million for the Turkish oil firm, whose 693 gas stations account for about 5 percent of the Turkish market.

Akpet facilities include eight oil terminals with a total capacity of 300,000 cubic meters, five liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) depots, three jet fuel depots and a lubricants production and packaging plant in İzmir’s Aliağa district with a capacity of 12,000 tons per year. (more…)