GCC invested $8bn in Turkey in five years

Gulf oil producers have invested nearly $8billion in Turkey over the past five years, largely exceeding the nearly $6.3 billion pumped by the United States into the Turkish market, according to official figures.

“Investment and economic relations between Turkey and the Arab countries, mainly those in the Gulf, have largely developed over the past years,” the Beirut-based Union of Arab Banks (UAB) said, citing Turkish government data.

“Between 2005 and 2010, Gulf countries pumped nearly $eight billion into Turkey, compared to around $6.3 billion invested by the US in that country...the Gulf investments accounted for 12 per cent of the total foreign capital in Turkey.”

In a report issued after organising a banking conference in Istanbul last month, UAB said Turkey also maintains strong trading ties with the Arab region, with their commercial exchange reaching nearly $120 billion during 2005-2010.

Turkey’s exports to the Arab world totaled around $80 billion during that period while its imports from the region stood at $40 billion.

In 2009, Turkey’s exports to the Arab nations peaked at around $21.3 billion, nearly 21 per cent the country’s total exports. Its imports from Arab states were put at about $7.6 billion last year, nearly 5.5 per cent of its total imports.

According to the report, published in UAB’s July magazine, around 2,073 Arab companies operate in various sectors in Turkey, covering industry, transport, farming, water, tourism, hotels, financial services and real estate.

Nearly 1.46 million Arabs visited Turkey in 2009, constituting 5.4 per cent of the total number of tourists to that country, the report showed.
 

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