Apart from the latest pandemic craze in the global economy, business in Turkey has been increasingly difficult for Austrian companies over the few past years. The rearview assessment that the economic situation deteriorated over the previous 12 months peaked in 2018 at 74 percent, according to a survey by Advantage Austria among Austrian companies in Turkey. In line with Turkey’s macroeconomic data, the vast majority (58 percent) of respondents still feel that the country’s general economic climate has deteriorated over the past 12 months. While 26 percent think that the economic situation has remained unchanged, only 16 percent feel Turkey’s general economic situation has improved.
WITH A TRADE VOLUME OF 2.43 BILLION EURO IN THE FIRST THREE QUARTERS OF 2019, TURKEY REMAINS A SOLID TRADING PARTNER FOR AUSTRIAN COMPANIES
Conducted in October 2019, the survey does not include concerns about the coronovirus outbreak. If the pandemic had not happened, Austrian companies would now likely be more optimistic about 2020, as they mentioned in the survey: More than a third of companies stated that the economic climate would rebound in 2020, supported by the fact that that 56% of Austrian companies were planning additional investments in the upcoming 12 months. Georg Karabaczek, head of Advantage Austria and Commercial Counsellor for the Austrian Consulate in Istanbul, says the optimism for 2020 has been replaced by uncertainty after the outbreak. Some sectors, like logistics, are not that bad, but no one can predict the future, according to the counsellor. “Since the outbreak is 3 weeks ahead of Turkey, companies have started to face difficulties in procurement from Austria,” he says.
