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Istanbul, Izmir, Ankara fail in sustainability, survey says

meb — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 07:09:54 +0000

Istanbul ranks among the poorest cities in Turkey by means of sustainability and habitability, according to a new survey. Eskişehir, Kayseri and Konya in Central Anatolia and the northwestern province of Bursa are the rising stars, the survey said.

In today’s global world it is cities and regions that compete, not the countries, said Mete Güney, general manager of MasterCard Southeastern Europe, during a Wednesday press conference to reveal the results of the survey.

“Under such conditions, evaluating the current situations in economic, social and environmental dimensions is crucial for cities to build their sustainable development plans,” he said. The survey was organized by MasterCard and Turkey’s Boğaziçi University.

The study is a result of data on 81 provinces in Turkey and surveys with business people from 29 specific cities.

The outcome showed that metropolitan cities, such as Istanbul, Ankara and İzmir, are considered low profile by resident business people despite their statistical data saying the opposite.

The mega-cities fail to fulfill the needs of the business world, said Refik Erzan, Ph.D., from Boğaziçi University, during the conference. “We can observe some world-cities in Turkey not ranked in the top 10 for sustainability.”

Istanbul, neighboring Kocaeli and the capital city of Ankara are in the top 10 according to objective evaluations and economic and social data, but subjective data puts them at the bottom, he said.

Ankara is Turkey’s leader in social performance and quality of life according to statistical data, but business people there are not hopeful for the economic future of the city, Erzan said.

Eskişehir ranked first in means of sustainability and social opportunities. Kayseri topped others when economic habitat and environment were considered. Bursa ranked first for responses to the question, “Are you content with doing business in your city?” Gaziantep and Hatay in the Southeast followed. Despite low economic figures, Mardin in the same region was named as a “promising city.”
source: hurriyet daily news

The Frekans Research Company helped organize the research with MasterCard and Turkey’s Boğaziçi University.

Foreign exchange rates

meb — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 08:33:04 +0000

Buying and selling prices of USD, Euro and British Pound in Istanbul and Ankara at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday are as follows (in TL):

ISTANBUL BUYING SELLING
U.S. Dollar 1.6050 1.6100
Euro 2.1150 2.1220
British Pound 2.3600 2.3800
ANKARA
U.S. Dollar 1.6000 1.6180
Euro 2.1100 2.1330
British Pound 2.3420 2.4000

Babylon opens office in Turkey

meb — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 20:52:09 +0000

An Israeli company offering dictionaries and institutional software solutions online has opened an office in Turkey, and has signed a distribution agreement with Turkish firm Medyasoft.

Babylon offers online and electronic dictionaries in 74 languages. It is also known for its “Enterprise” solution, which facilitates data management.

The company already has 3 million Turkish users, despite having no office in Turkey until now, said Alon Carmeli, chief executive of Babylon. “We see important potential here and wish to enhance our presence,” Carmeli said. “We will strengthen our online activity with Medyasoft.”

Turkey stands among the top five in Babylon users, while the company aims to put it among the top three in revenue, the chief executive said.

The Babylon Web site is visited by 65 million users worldwide every day, with 13 million of those visitors registered users. Out of that, 3 million users chose to pay for exclusive services. “In the first year, we aim to reach 100,000 paid users in Turkey,” he said. “There are users who use limited versions. We think they may opt for unlimited versions. Our online dictionaries cost $59.”

Despite the crisis, Babylon keeps growing, Carmeli said. “In a crisis, our business on the institutional side drops, but there is a rise on the individual side. Internet usage increases during crises. Laid off people look for jobs over the Internet, while also trying to develop their foreign language skills,” he said.
source: Hurriyet daily news

Polls near, status quo anticipated

meb — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 08:47:45 +0000

That the battle being waged between the parties for municipal seats is only going to heat up in the last week before local elections is something of a given. And while there is almost general consensus that the ruling AKP will be victor of most the spoils, the question becomes to what degree the opposition can cause any upsets along the way and where.

The cutthroat competition of local politics heats up this week ahead of elections March 29, and while the ruling party is expected to make convincing gains, the main opposition may yet reveal a few surprises.

The rivalry between the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, and the main opposition Republican People’s Party, or CHP, is attracting particular attention in Ankara and Istanbul, where the CHP is tipped to increase its stake.

While there are signs the AKP may not win as convincingly as it did in the last local elections in 2004, it still looks to have the upper hand in Turkey’s two main cities. This year could also see the Nationalist Movement Party, or MHP, increase its support base in the capital.

The AKP’s candidate and current mayor of greater Istanbul, Kadir Topbaş, is expected to win the race for the top office once more this year.

Topbaş received 45 percent of the vote in 2004, while the candidate for the CHP, Sefa Sirmen, managed only 29 percent.

For next week’s elections, the CHP is running with Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu for mayor’s post. Kılıçdaroğlu, who figured predominantly over his corruption allegations against the AKP, has increased the CHP’s support largely thanks to his promise to fight corruption. However, prospects of the party taking the Istanbul seat remain slim.

The Social Democratic People’s Party, or SHP, which has allied with the Democratic Society Party, or DTP, has entered a candidate in the race. The DTP is represented in Istanbul by its candidate Akın Birdal.

Fierce battle for Ankara

The capital looks set to witness a more closely fought battle. The AKP’s candidate, Melih Gökçek, captured a staggering 55 percent of the vote in 2004. This year’s CHP candidate, Murat Karayalçın, who was running for the SHP in 2004, managed 20 percent. This year, Karayalçın is running as a joint candidate for both the CHP and the SHP. Latest polls show that Gökçek did not fare too well in a live televised debate with the CHP’s Istanbul candidate, Kılıçdaroğlu, and the AKP contender has lost some ground.

In the last three elections Gökçek has attracted voters from the ranks of MHP supporters, yet the situation seems to have reversed this time around. The MHP is experiencing a revival thanks largely to its candidate, Mansur Yavaş.

The AKP’s mayoral candidate for the district of Keçiören, Turgut Altınok withdrew his candidacy in February. Altınok, who has an MHP background, has also come out in support of Yavaş this year. If Yavaş manages to lure a few more voters away from Gökçek, this year could still throw up some surprises yet. Although Gökçek appears to be in front, Karayalçın may yet reign it if the loses more votes to the MHP. In the district of Çankaya, a traditional CHP stronghold, the main opposition party is expected to comfortably retain its dominance.

Despite the AKP’s efforts, the CHP continues to head them off in another of its fortresses, the western city of İzmir with its candidate Aziz Kocaoğlu. The CHP ran Ahmet Piriştina as candidate in 2004 and convincingly won 45 percent of the vote. Following Piriştina’s demise, Kocaoğlu has replaced him. The AKP has once more nominated Taha Aksoy for the İzmir race. Aksoy was defeated after managing just 32 percent of votes in 2004. Although Kocaoğlu has faced recent criticism for a debate regarding the levels of arsenic in the water supply, he remains the clear favorite.

The Democratic Left Party, or DSP, is expected to maintain its candidate in Eskişehir. The party’s candidate, Yılmaz Büyükerşen, has been elected mayor for three consecutive terms. Hasan Gönen is the AKP’s candidate in the city, which is also the electorate of Finance Minister Kemal Unakıtan. Unakıtan was elected as the AKP’s Eskişehir deputy in the 2007 general elections. Despite Unakıtan’s interest in the city, Gönen does not seem to have much chance against Büyükerşen, who has transformed the image of the city with a series of successful projects.

AKP ahead in Antalya

There is another tightly fought contest between the AKP’s Menderes Türel and the CHP’s Mustafa Akayadın for the mayoralty in Antalya. At this stage Türel seems to have kept one step ahead in the race. Türel received 34 percent of the vote in 2004, the same year the CHP candidate, Ertuğrul Dokuzoğlu, secured only 22 percent. Instead of the incumbent Mayor Eşref Fakıbaba, the AKP has nominated a new name as its candidate for Urfa. In response, Fakıbaba is running as an independent this year.

The Saadet (Felicity) Party has voiced support for Fakıbaba’s candidacy. Although Fakıbaba does have a chance to upset the AKP in Urfa, the ruling party remains assertive. The AKP’s candidate for Urfa mayor this year is Mehmet Oymak. The Pro-Kurdish DTP seems to have staved off strong opposition in Diyarbakır, the predominantly Kurdish southeastern city of Turkey. A recent strife between AKP and Saadet Party in Van may just pave the way for a DTP victory too.

PREVIOUS MAYORAL RESULTS

The ruling AKP won 1,787 mayoralty seats in provinces, districts and counties, with an overall 40 percent of the vote in 2004’s local elections. It secured 12 out of 16 metropolitan municipalities and 46 mayoral seats for provinces.

The CHP won 474 municipalities with 20 percent of the total vote, while the MHP’s 246 municipalities’ mayoral seats came from 10 percent of the national vote. The True Path Party, or DYP, won 389 municipalities with 9.4 percent, the Motherland Party, or ANAP, took 101 with 2.9 percent, Saadet Party 63 from 4.78 percent and the SHP to 66 municipalities with 4.78 percent of the vote.

The major parties to feature in next week’s elections are the AKP, the CHP and the MHP. The Pro-Kurdish DTP will not feature strongly beyond the southeast. The results of the elections will not be evaluated just in terms of the success of each individual candidate but also in terms of the parties’ general success in the vote overall.
source: Hurriyet daily news

ING becomes official sponsor of F1 Turkey leg

meb — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 00:18:55 +0000

ING Group has announced plans to be the official sponsor of the Turkey leg of Formula 1 race, which take place in Istanbul Park on June 5-7, 2009.

The Istanbul leg of the face will be known as the Formula 1 ING Turkey Grand Prix.

ING Bank’s Retail Banking Deputy Director General Vincent van den Boogert said the bank, which entered the Turkish banking sector strongly, was pleased to sponsor such an important and prestigious organization.

The ING Group has been the title sponsor of the ING Renault F1 team for the past three years. The group has also sponsored the Grand Prix in Australia, Belgium and Hungary.

The finalized F1 sponsorship agreement is due to expire at the end of 2009; however, the group said it will continue its support as formal title sponsor of Formula 1 in Turkey.

The Dutch global financial company, ING Group, operates in more than 50 countries and offers private and corporate banking, insurance and asset management services.
source: Hurriyet Daily News

DMG to raise capital

meb — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 10:57:44 +0000

Doğan Media Group, Turkey’s biggest media company, plans to raise its capital by 30 percent, asking partners to contribute YTL 1 (64 cents) a share.

DMG to raise capital Doğan Holding and Doğan family members, the main owners of DMG, will buy 183.5 million shares, which were trading at Ykr 64 yesterday afternoon, according to a filing with the Istanbul Stock Exchange yesterday. DMG shares lost 86.5 percent of their value since Jan. 1.Meanwhile, Doğan Holding shares were downgraded to “neutral” from “overweight” by analyst Bülent Yurdagül at HSBC. The price target is YTL 1.35 per share.
source: Hurriyet daily news

Turkey aims to become regional power through aid programs

meb — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 14:49:26 +0000

Turkey, becoming a prominent actor in the global arena, has increased its foreign aid efforts, assisting developing countries with $5.2 billion in aid over the last four years.

The Turkish International Cooperation and Development Agency (TİKA) undertakes aid projects throughout the world. TİKA has contributed greatly to the country’s efforts to help the needy, an old tradition dating back to Ottoman Empire era. Investing in the development of other countries helps Turkey improve its relations with the rest of the world. As part of these efforts, Turkey gives financial aid to other countries to support their growth and progress and help them find solutions to their problems. These projects contribute to Turkey’s efforts to bring peace and prosperity to regions that suffer from long-lasting political clashes.

The Turkish government keeps in touch with the countries it gives assistance to through their public bodies, universities and civil society organizations. TIKA carries out projects in a number of countries: according to official 2005 data, TIKA had implemented a total of 562 projects across Asia and the Caucuses, 205 across Eastern Europe and the Balkans, 28 in North Africa and 17 in the Middle East.

TİKA was initially formed in 1992 to provide assistance to developing countries where Turkish is spoken and countries that border Turkey. Later the government set its sights on Africa and the Middle East, and TİKA initiated projects in these regions.

Turkey began giving monetary aid to developing countries in the early 1990s, but increased its contributions over time. The number of countries receiving aid from Turkey was 72 in 2004 and increased to 131 in 2007. Turkey offered assistance more countries in the past few years due to a number of natural disasters that occurred throughout the world. Earthquake and tsunami disasters in South Asia between 2004 and 2006 caused Turkey to focus on emergency humanitarian aid. The government has followed a systematic and well-planned strategy since then; in 2007 the government increased its technical assistance projects, helping re-establish the infrastructure of disaster-stricken countries.

Turkish civil society organizations have also contributed greatly to foreign aid. Last year the private sector gave a total of 445.6 million in aid in the international arena.

Turkey currently has 23 members in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and has observer status in the Development Assistance Committee (DAC). Turkey also contributed to peace efforts in Afghanistan, Georgia, Iraq, Lebanon and Palestine last year.

Turkey’s aid grants totaled $1.34 billion in 2007 and $5.2 billion over the last four years. In 2007 the largest share went to Afghanistan with $69.5 million. Kyrgyzstan followed with $43 million while Azerbaijan got $33.5 million of aid from the Turkish government.

All in all, the Turkish government aims to create a climate conducive to peace and cooperation by implementing economic, commercial, technical, social, cultural and educational projects that embrace all segments of society in the countries it helps, carrying the values and elements of cultural geography to universal dimensions.
source: Today’s Zaman

Istanbul’s tallest building set to draw attention

meb — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 13:53:04 +0000

The İstanbul Sapphire, a revolutionary, high-tech, environmentally friendly and energy-efficient skyscraper, has risen in the heart of İstanbul.

The Kiler Group initiated the Sapphire project three years ago to build the city a prestigious building with extraordinary social and cultural facilities. Currently the tallest recently erected building in Europe, the İstanbul Sapphire is well poised to attract the attention of both foreign and domestic investors.

Briefing the press about the latest developments in the Sapphire project yesterday on the building’s lookout terrace — at a height of 226 meters — Kiler Group CEO Nahit Kiler said they expected to make the skyscraper a modern symbol of the city. “Similar to the Empire State Building in New York, we will introduce the İstanbul Sapphire to become a trademark and make a name for itself in the world,” he explained, adding that they expected to finish the building in the last quarter of 2009. He asserted that they are pleased to see that they are very close to realizing their goal. Kiler underlined that they are not afraid of the negative effects of the current global financial turmoil and that they have already sold 40 percent of the residences in the building. “We are continuing with sales, and we have earned $7.5 million since the start of the crisis,” he noted, stressing that everything had gone as they expected from the very beginning, both in regard to the building and in financial terms. He also said the share of foreign investors in the sales of residences in the skyscraper so far is 15 percent and that they hoped this would increase in the coming months.

Kiler GYO General Manager Musa Aykaç said the building has already won awards in the global arena. “The İstanbul Sapphire’s official Web site has been awarded the top prize ‘Best in Class’ by the Interactive Media Awards in the real estate category. Also, we have reached the final stage in the Cityscape Architectural Review Awards, known as the Oscars of the architectural world,” he noted.

The İstanbul Sapphire, having reached 261 meters in height, is currently the tallest building in Turkey and ranks 97th in the world in terms of height. There are 66 store spaces, 10 of which are underground, a car park, a shopping mall and numerous spaces for restaurants. The prices of residences in the building range from $1 million to $7.5 million.
source: Today’s Zaman

Details of 1 million bank accounts sold on eBay

meb — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 16:57:01 +0000

Account holders’ personal details have been found on a computer sold on eBay, banks said on Tuesday, adding to fears over data security.

Media reports said details of more than a million customers of Royal Bank of Scotland, American Express and NatWest were found on the computer sold for 35 pounds on the auction and shopping website. RBS said the information included historical data related to credit card applications and data from other banks, but would not disclose further details.

The Daily Mail said names, addresses, mobile phone numbers, bank account numbers, sort codes, credit card numbers, mothers’ maiden names and even signatures had been left on the hard drive.

The information was being held by archiving firm Graphic Data, which copies paperwork from some of Britain’s biggest financial organisations and stores it digitally. A former employee sold the computer earlier this month without removing the information, media reports added. The personal information was discovered when the buyer, an IT manager, looked at the hard drive. Graphic Data has confirmed to us that one of their machines appears to have been inappropriately sold on via a third party, RBS said in a statement. As a result, historical data relating to credit card applications from some of our customers and data from other banks were not removed. Graphic Data said in a statement: “The IT equipment that appeared on eBay was neither planned nor instructed by the company to be disposed.” Investigations are ongoing to find out how this equipment was removed from a secure location. RBS said it was working to resolve “this regrettable loss with Graphic Data as a matter of urgency.” The incident is the latest in a string of mishaps involving sensitive personal information by government and businesses. In April, HSBC said a computer disc containing details of nearly 400,000 customers went missing after being sent via Royal Mail courier, while last December Norwich Union Life, one of the UK’s largest life insurers, was fined 1.26 million pounds by the regulator for exposing its customers to the risk of fraud.
source: Today’s Zaman

June exports rise 34.88 percent

meb — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 15:22:04 +0000

Turkey is among the top 20 economies in the world, said the chairman of the Turkish Exporters’ Assembly, or TIM, while revealing the June export figures in the Tarsus district of Mersin yesterday. “This is not an accomplishment to be belittled,” said Oğuz Satıcı.

Turkey’s exports increased 34.88 percent in June to $12.74 billion compared to the same period last year, he said. During the first six months of the year, exports increased 36.07 percent to reach $67.14 billion. The country’s exports rose almost 30 percent to $123.76 billion in the past 12 months.

“Transportation vehicle exports were worth $2.44 billion, while transportation vehicle-related industries collected $2.29 billion from exports. The iron and steel sectors, on the other hand, had exports totaling $1.29 billion,” said Satıcı.

The agriculture sector had an 8.44 percent share in June exports. Exports in the sector increased 33.04 percent compared to last year.

Meanwhile, the exports of the industry sector, which has an 88.95 percent share in the country’s monthly exports, totaled $10.74 billion. That is an increase of 35.74 percent compared to the same period last year. The industrial sector’s exports for the first six months of the year totaled $59.2 billion, while exports for all 12 months surpassed $107.8 billion.

Bitter truth
However, beside the pretty picture painted, there is the bitter truth of Turkey, which also ranked sixth in high current account deficits and fifth in domestic borrowing among emerging countries.

“Being deeply indebted means that the country’s income and expenditure balance is not in check. To make a long story short, Turkey, unable to spin its economy with its income, looks abroad. As the amount of borrowing increases, so does the real interest rate. A high interest rate creates a low exchange rate policy and environment that sabotage production. Such an environment also pushes people to loan money to the government instead of investing,” Satıcı said.

“Production is the foundation of wealth. Meanwhile, we are pulling away from production. With high energy costs and high taxes, we are blocking the path of lasting production, meaning we are barricading Turkey’s road to wealth,” he added.

May foreign trade deficit widens to record
Turkey’s trade deficit widened to $6.8 billion in May, a record for a single month, as rising oil prices boosted the import bill. The trade gap expanded from $5.8 billion in the same period last year, the Turkish Statistical Institute, or TÜİK, said on its Web site Monday.

The trade deficit is widening even as exports hit record levels because the country depends on imports of energy and raw materials. The gap has widened for 13 consecutive months and the current-account deficit, the widest measure of trade in goods and services, may reach $50 billion by year’s end, Economy Minister Mehmet Şimsek said in April. The 2007 deficit was $38 billion.

Exports rose 37 percent to $12.5 billion in May, a record for a single month, the statistics agency said. Imports increased 29 percent to $19.3 billion from the same period last year, also a record. Turkey imports nearly all of its energy, and crude oil prices rose to about $128 a barrel in February from $66 a year earlier. Imports of fuels and mineral oils rose to $4.6 billion in May 2008 from $2.7 billion in the same month of 2007.
source: Turkish Daily news

Istanbul ranks 114th among world cities for quality of life

meb — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 08:01:57 +0000

A new survey has found that İstanbul ranks 114th among 215 cities around the world in terms of quality of living.

According to Mercer’s 2008 Quality of Living survey, European cities dominate the rankings of locations with the best quality of living, while İstanbul ranks 114th. Last year İstanbul was in 121st place. Zurich retains its 2007 title as the top location for overall quality of living, followed by a tie between Vienna and Geneva and then by Vancouver and Auckland.

The rankings are based on a point scoring index, which sees Zurich scoring 108, while İstanbul scores 74.7. Baghdad ranks the lowest among world cities in terms of quality of living, with a score of 13.5. Cities are compared to New York as the base city, with an index score of 100. The survey is conducted to help governments and major companies in placing employees on international assignments.

The survey also identifies the cities with the highest personal safety ranking based on internal stability, crime, effectiveness of law enforcement and relationships with other countries. Luxembourg is top, followed by Bern, Geneva, Helsinki and Zurich, all equally placed at number two. Chicago, Houston and San Francisco are among the safest cities in the US, all ranking at 53. Baghdad is the world’s least safe city along with Kinshasa (214), Karachi (213), Nairobi (212) and Bangui (211). Luxembourg scores 131.4 on the index while Baghdad scores 3.8.

Mercer’s study is based on detailed assessments of 39 key quality of living determinants, grouped in such categories as political and social environment, economic environment, socio-cultural environment, health and sanitation, schools and education, public services and transportation, recreation, customer goods, housing and natural environment.

In the meantime, in a separate study by MasterCard, London was selected as the world’s top center of commerce among cities that were rated by how they influence the global economy. The British capital eclipsed second-place New York, which was held back by bond market regulations that affect the volume of listed sales, a more volatile US currency and by a US economy that was considered to be less stable than Britain’s economy, MasterCard said. Istanbul was the 64th city among the 75 rated.
source: Today’s Zaman

Turkish filmmaker Ceylan wins Cannes director award

meb — Mon, 26 May 2008 09:46:53 +0000

Turkish filmmaker Nuri Bilge Ceylan has taken out the Best Director Award at this year’s Cannes Film Festival with his drama Three Monkeys.

The director’s award, presented on the last day of the 61st Cannes festival, is one of the premier awards of the event and one of the highest forms of recognition that a director can receive.

In accepting his award, Ceylan said he was honoured to receive the director’s prize from the Cannes jury. “I dedicate it to my beautiful country Turkey,” he said.

Three Monkey’s stars Yavuz Bingol, Hatice Aslan, Ahmet Rifat Sungar, Ercan Kesal, Cafer Kose and Gurkan Aydin.

It is not the first time that Ceylan has come away with a major prize from Cannes. His film Uzak (Distant) took the Grand Jury Prize and the Best Actor Prize at Cannes, while his film Iklimler (Climates) won the FIPRESCI Movie Critics’ Award at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival.
source: ntvmsnbc.com