USA Turkish Times - US-Turkey partnership guide launched in İstanbul

US-Turkey partnership guide launched in İstanbul

A US market accession guide, prepared as part of the US-Turkey commercial partnership project under the auspices of the Turkish Union of Chambers and Commodities Exchanges (TOBB) and the US Chamber of Commerce, was launched with a press conference in Istanbul on Thursday. Assistant Secretary Bureau of Economic, Energy and Business Affairs Dan Sullivan, among the attendees, said "Our goal is to realize the commercial potential between the US and Turkey."

TOBB President Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu said the goal of Turkish companies was to become more competitive in global markets. He pointed out the importance of the guide and said: "The US market is unquestionably very important as the US is the biggest customer for exporters all over the world. However, Turkey's exports' share in US imports is only 0.3 percent." The guide includes many helpful tips and advice for those companies wishing to access the US market.

Meanwhile the American Business Forum in Turkey (ABFT) has announced its top priorities for 2007, including efforts to improve Turkey’s global competitiveness and advocacy to expand US companies’ trade and investments in Turkey. The organization said it wanted, in particular, to put more effort into resolving long-standing issues and regulatory delays that harm Turkey’s potential as a recipient of technology transfers and investment. “The good news is that during the past five years there has been a general trend in which US-based companies are investing in Turkey and the level of bilateral trade is moving upward,” said Galip Sukaya, chairman of the board of the ABFT. “The bad news is that there is a lot more work to be done if we are to raise the investment level to a point where we can compete more effectively with countries like Ireland, Singapore, China or India.”

In releasing a “Top 10” list, the ABFT said it wanted to highlight areas where Turkey was not yet achieving its full potential in terms of US and international investment, despite its well-known advantages in infrastructure and human capital. The ABFT will focus on resolving existing issues and proposing new policies that would help enhance Turkey’s global competitiveness high-valued, innovation-led industries.

The ABFT said that despite challenges and distractions associated with election years - Turkey will have a parliamentary and presidential election in 2007 -- it was determined to press an ambitious agenda in Ankara, where policy makers appear ready to implement more changes.

“We see signs that there is a consensus that in a global economy no country has the luxury to stall on reforms that will make it more globally competitive,” said Sukaya. “We have tremendous human capital in this country, but in many cases, the current regulatory and legal environment is not conducive to investment.”

Top 10 priorities of ABFT

1. Provide effective advocacy for US companies currently operating in Turkey
2. Improve Turkey’s global competitiveness
3. Increase US exports to Turkey and support goals of Turkish exporters to US markets
4. Champion increased US investment in Turkey
5. Conduct outreach and improve cooperation with trade associations and with relevant international organizations active in Turkey
6. Support specific goals for various industries
7. Advocate intensification and acceleration of EU harmonization
8. Promote corporate responsibility
9. Provide networking opportunities for members
10. Strengthen ABFT as an effective organization

< Önceki		Sonraki >

WORLD NEWS TODAY

TURKISH DAILY

NEWS