Turkey Financial News

Posted by meb at October 19th, 2009

The Turkish economy has registered superb improvement in competitiveness in recent years and proven its potential as a magnet for international investors, world-renowned strategist Professor Michael Porter has said. Addressing a group of businessmen and reporters on Saturday at a conference organized by İşTcell, a Turkcell brand directed at corporate customers, Porter, director of Harvard Business School’s Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness, said that if Turkey were traded on the stock market, he would definitely make an equity investment in the country.

During the first part of his speech, Porter described the major premises of creating strategies and determining and developing a competitive approach and the role of leaders in the competitiveness of a company. He also shared his views on possible strategies that may be adopted during times of economic crisis. He devoted the second part of his speech to discussing Turkey’s economic strategies, including an in-depth analysis of the business world’s role in these strategies. (more…)

Posted by meb at October 19th, 2009

The central administration budget for 2010, which focuses on overcoming the economic crisis, was submitted for Parliament’s approval on Saturday and includes no specific reference to a potential stand-by deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Disclosing the details of the new budget at a press conference on Saturday, Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek said Turkey had prepared its budget while taking into consideration its own needs and the conditions arising from the economic crisis, underlining that talks with the IMF would “proceed on the premises set out in the budget.”

The size of the 2010 budget is TL 286.93 billion. It includes a 5.06 percent wage increase for civil servants, in two equal semiannual installments of 2.5 percent. With expected revenue of TL 236.8 billion, the deficit will be approximately TL 50 billion.

According to experts, Finance Ministry bureaucrats maintained caution while drafting the budget. The economic gloom in Turkey will persist next year, and the government will stick to its policy of fiscal discipline, they note. (more…)

Posted by meb at October 19th, 2009

The number of mobile phones sold in the first half of this year was down 8 percent over the same period of the previous year, thanks largely to an increased propensity for saving amid a global economic crisis, despite promotions offered by mobile operators, a recent survey has shown.

The Turkey division of the international research company GfK found in a market survey that nearly 450,000 less mobile phones were sold in the first six months of the year. In the January-June period of 2008, Turks purchased 5.46 million devices, whereas they bought slightly more than 5 million phones in the same period of this year. (more…)

Posted by meb at October 19th, 2009

The Turkish Investment Summit opens at the Renaissance Chancery Court Hotel in London on Tuesday.

The three-day program will provide plenty of time for social networking, acquiring new contacts and discussing business with potential partners and clients.

Organized by the Turkish Embassy in London and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Turkish Investment Summit will provide an in-depth look into the global and domestic outlook for Turkey, including a spotlight on European Union accession. (more…)

Posted by meb at October 19th, 2009

Italy, Russia and Turkey signed an agreement on building the Samsun-Ceyhan oil pipeline, according to Eni, Italy’s biggest oil company.

The project underscores a “joint commitment to enhance energy security,” according to a statement issued by Eni on Monday. The pipeline will run between Samsun on Turkey’s Black Sea coast and the Mediterranean port of Ceyhan.

The accord was signed in Milan Tuesday by Turkey’s Energy Minister Taner Yıldız, Italy’s Economy Minister Claudio Scajola and Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin and Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko. (more…)

Posted by meb at October 19th, 2009

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, or EBRD, which has been withdrawing gradually from Central European countries, plans to prioritize Turkey.

EBRD is the first international finance corporation, among many others, to revise Turkey’s economic growth in a positive direction.

The bank had published a report estimating Turkey’s 2010 growth to be 1 percent. The bank has revised that outlook to 3 percent.

The economies of eastern and southern Europe including Turkey, will experience an economic contraction this year, however, signs of recovery will begin next year, said the EBRD.

Turkey’s economy will contract nearly 6 percent in 2009, however that contraction rate is still well above contraction expected in other countries in the region. (more…)

Posted by meb at October 19th, 2009

Groupama, a leading European insurance, banking and financial services group, has decided to join forces with Turkey’s Başak Sigorta and Güven Sigorta under one brand in an attempt to expand operations in Turkey.

Becoming the third-largest insurance company, Groupama now aims to continue an ambitious investment plan with its Turkish branch. It announced last week the launch of “Groupama Sigorta” and “Groupama Emeklilik,” by merging Başak and Güven insurance companies. Groupama acquired Başak Sigorta and Başak Emeklilik in 2006 and Güven Sigorta and Güven Hayat in 2008.

“We joined two strong rooted companies’ forces by bringing local and international expertise together. With this merger, our clients will benefit from a strong service offering, an innovative product proposition and the strength of one of the leading international insurance companies, which already proved itself to more than 16 million customers all over the world,” said Jean-Francois Lemoux, international general manager of Groupama. (more…)

Posted by meb at October 5th, 2009

If Turkey continues to pursue sound economic policies, its economy could perform better than current estimates, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn said on Sunday.

Strauss-Kahn, who is currently in İstanbul to attend the 2009 Annual Meetings of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund, noted that he expected the Turkish economy to recover rapidly from the ongoing global economic crisis, saying that the Turkish economy has made great progress thanks to reforms previously implemented in the financial sector. As a member of the G-20, which forms the backbone of the global economy, he said, Turkey is not only one of the leading economies of the world, but also a dynamic member of the IMF.

According to the fund’s latest World Economic Outlook, released last week, Turkey’s economy is expected to grow 3.7 percent in 2010, after a global recession caused the country’s economy to contract an estimated 6.5 percent this year. The inflation rate in the country is expected to stand at 6.2 percent this year before increasing to 6.8 percent in 2010. The report estimated that Turkey’s current account deficit to gross domestic product (GDP) ratio would increase from 1.9 percent this year to 3.7 percent in 2010. Furthermore, Turkey’s quota in the IMF is expected to increase to more than 1 percent. Analysts note that the Turkish economy will be the fastest growing in Europe in 2010. (more…)