The Istanbul Chamber of Industry (ISO) released the results of Turkey’s Top 500 Industrial Enterprises 2021 (ISO 500) survey. The production-based sales in the country’s top 500 manufacturing companies surged by 73.8% to over TRY 2tr in 2021, compared to the previous year. The surge mainly stemmed from strong growth in exports and movement in foreign exchange rates and inflation. Exports made by the top 500 companies increased by 33.9% to USD 85.8bn in the same period. The operating profit of the firms included in the ISO Top 500 jumped 139% to TRY 345bn. The geographical weight of the manufacturing industry shifted in favor of Anatolia last year.
Koc Holding’s oil refinery subsidiary, Turkiye Petrol Rafinerileri (Tupras), topped the list with a production-based sales revenue of TRY 136.8bn, followed by Koc Holding’s automotive subsidiary Ford Otosan with TRY 67.3bn in sales revenue. That was followed by the Azerbaijan-based energy company SOCAR Turkey’s oil refinery subsidiary Star Refinery with TRY 55.2bn sales revenue.
The surge in export volume of the companies included in the ISO 500 stemmed especially from an increase in foreign demand, according to ISO Chairman Erdal Bahcivan. He also said the main factor, which raised exports, was additional supply and demand when the Turkish manufacturing industry emerged as an important alternative producer for buyers across the world. Bahcivan also noted that the gradual removal of the pandemic restrictions in social and economic activities and expanded domestic demand supported economic growth. Bahcivan emphasized that the industrial sector and the manufacturing industry, which expanded by 16.6% and 17.2%, respectively, in 2021, positively differentiated from the overall economy and made the highest contribution to economic growth.
A Turkish-EU political dialogue meeting was held in the capital Ankara yesterday, the first such meeting in some three years. The meeting was held under the chairmanship of Deputy Foreign Minister and Director for EU Affairs Faruk Kaymakci and Deputy Foreign Minister Sedat Onal. The meeting, held at the political director level, was attended by Enrique Mora, the EU’s deputy secretary-general for political affairs, EU Commission Deputy Director-General for Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Maciej Popowski, Head of the EU Delegation to Turkey Nikolaus Meyer-Landrut, and other senior EU representatives. Kaymakci said Turkey expects fair treatment of its EU membership bid, adding that the nation’s reform process will gain momentum with the acceleration of its membership process. “We are living in difficult times. Russia is attacking Ukraine, and we must stand together against this situation,” said Moda, adding that Turkey is an important partner of the EU. At the meeting, the delegations also exchanged views on Turkish-EU relations as well as regional issues.
Turkey will play a key role in solving the world’s ongoing food crisis in the coming weeks, according to Presidential Spokesperson Ibrahim Kalin. Kalin stated that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke to his Russian and Ukrainian counterparts on the telephone about exporting Ukrainian agricultural products by sea. He also said the issue will be resolved at the meetings that will be held in Turkey in the coming weeks. Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu announced that his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov will visit Turkey on June 8 to discuss opening a security corridor on the Black Sea to address the wheat issue.
DAILY AGENDA
Istanbul Chamber of Industry (ICI) Turkey Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) will be announced for May (10.00 a.m.).
The Istanbul Chamber of Commerce (ITO) will release retail and wholesale prices in Istanbul for May (12.00 p.m.).
The Parliament will continue to discuss the legislative proposals on the Turkish Exporters Assembly (TIM) and the Exporters’ Associations and the amendment of some other laws (2.00 p.m.).
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