28.01.2025 Bursa

The President of the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Türkiye (TOBB) M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu expressed his pleasure to meet with business people of Balkan and Rumelia origin at the 32nd Synergy Meeting organized by the Balkan Rumelia Industrialists’ and Business People’s Association (BALKANTÜRKSİAD).

Stating that the Balkan countries are strategic trade partners for Türkiye and that the total trade volume with the countries in the region is around 40 billion dollars, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “Turkish entrepreneurs have invested more than 3 billion dollars in 11 Balkan countries so far, providing production and employment opportunities. Türkiye has realized many important projects in the Balkans in terms of both infrastructure and superstructure, from airports, highways and bridges to power plants and waste water treatment plants. Turkish contractors have carried out construction works worth 25 billion dollars in 700 projects in the region.”

Referring to the wars and conflicts in the world, Hisarcıklıoğlu said: “Ukraine-Russia, Iran-Israel, China-Taiwan issues pose risks for the whole world. The fall of the Assad regime in Syria was a positive development for our region and our country. After the establishment of an inclusive government recognized by the world in Syria, Syria’s reconstruction process will begin and trade will normalize. This opens up new opportunities for Türkiye in terms of logistics and trade. Our strong construction sector, which ranks second in the world, and the presence of cement and iron and steel factories close to the region give us an advantage. In addition, an important market will emerge for the export of many manufactured products, especially furniture and white goods.”

Stating that the European Union (EU) is clearly lagging behind the USA and China in competitiveness, Hisarcıklıoğlu continued as follows: “The German economy, the driving force of Europe, is weakening. Europe’s structural problems are growing. The growth expectations of the European business community remain low. The European Union is our most important export and investment partner. We make our biggest exports to EU countries. However, the EU’s share of the world economy has declined from 25 percent to 11 percent in the last 10 years. This has a negative impact on our exports. On the other hand, China has a serious excess capacity in many sectors thanks to the incentives and economies of scale it has provided in the last 20 years. This creates a serious cost advantage.”

Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “China is taking over the economy in many countries, either through exports or by buying companies. In this context, the industry of our country, especially automotive and machinery, is also under threat. I think it is very important to take measures together against this Chinese locust.”

Hisarcıklıoğlu explained that by closely following the developments in the world, it is necessary to ensure that Türkiye emerges from this trade war process with the least damage from a strategic perspective, and said, “When we turn to the domestic economy, we see that the macro economy is balancing. We consider the decline in inflation and credit risk premium, the increases in the country rating, and the stability provided in the money markets as promising developments for the future.”

(A.A.)