GCC may invest $3bn in Turkey during 2010

Ata Invest, a Turkish investment bank, is expecting investments to increase to almost $3 billion (Dh11.01bn) from the GCC to Turkey in 2010. This would be a significant increase compared to 2009 when investment activity took a hit primarily due to the economic crisis, Hakan Ferhatoglu, Chairman of Ata Invest told Emirates Business.

"Investor confidence is gradually returning and we expect it to be higher in 2010. We are working on more than a dozen large deals now, with each deal involving over $50mn equity. We hope to see between $1bn to $3bn of investment in the coming year," he said.

The company focuses on investments from private equity, sovereign wealth funds and family businesses from the region. It also promotes investment from Turkey into the UAE.

Ferhatoglu admitted that the economic crisis has affected investments during 2009. "Registered investments from the UAE were only $6mn, which accounts for less than 0.1 per cent of the total FDI flowing into Turkey. The overall confidence level of investors was much affected but now we see it returning. Rising oil prices will further help increase investments, Ferhatoglu said. Ata Invest is generating awareness among investors in the UAE and in Turkey about opportunities they can tap into.

The GCC markets are attractive for Turkey, he said. For investors in the UAE, Turkey's food, agriculture, healthcare, infrastructure, construction and real estate sectors offer attractive investment opportunities.

Turkey's infrastructure and contracting companies have considerable experience, have achieved significant economies of scale and are second only to those in China. They could emerge as major players in the GCC infrastructure sector by collaborating with the UAE's relatively young contracting industry, he said.

There are immense possibilities for cross-border financing arrangements between GCC and Turkish companies which will in turn facilitate the execution of major infrastructure projects in the GCC, he added.

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