Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

Hisarcıklıoğlu, in his speech at the opening ceremony of the TOBB Council of Chambers of Commerce and Industry and Chambers of Commerce Council Joint Meeting with the participation of Trade Minister Ruhsar Pekcan, said that the decisions have been made in the recent period to reduce the burdens on the business world and open the way for the economy.

Stated that a series of good news have been delivered by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Hisarcıklıoğlu emphasized the importance of Trade Receivable Insurance for years.

Hisarcıklıoğlu pointed out that extraordinary developments were taking place in the economy and that the increases in foreign currency and interest rates did not reflect the real situation of the country's economy.

Stating that they expect the troubles to be behind them with the policies enacted by the government, Hisarcıklıoğlu continued:

“The fluctuations in exchange rates and interest rates declined compared to August. The money markets became more stable. Of course, here, the duty and responsibility falls to us, the private sector. First of all, we must maintain our production and employment capacity. We should focus not on risks but on opportunities, on exporting goods. We must continue to move cautiously but decisively, without lowering morale. As the chambers and commodity exchanges community, we have pitched in and have shown solid national solidarity. I hope all these efforts will give results and our country will enter a period of brisk growth.”

Stating that more work remains to be done and they will discuss these during the meeting, Hisarcıklıoğlu stressed that Turkey is a great nation with power to overcome any problem.

Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that the difficult days will pass, “We will overcome this bump in the road as well; no one should doubt that. We will will continue to work and produce more in order to have the steps taken reflect on the economy and to fulfill our every responsibility.”

- Trade Minister Ruhsar Pekcan

In her speech, Trade Minister Ruhsar Pekcan stated that they would put the electronic cheques and bill system into practice as soon as possible.

Minister Pekcan, speaking at the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB), Chambers of Commerce and Industry and Chambers of Commerce Joint Council meeting, stated that the global economy is undergoing important transformations in the fields of trade, technology and legislation.

Pekcan pointed out that it is imperative to develop the right policies, to focus on alternative markets and new generation technologies during this period; that the world production has undergone a digital transformation process and that this transformation should not be missed.

Pekcan reported that the Ministry of Commerce is continuing to work to develop new policies to better understand these changes and provided information about the projects they have implemented.

Pekcan emphasized that they carefully examine the demands made by the business world and produce solutions to the problems quickly and they established Consultative Council with non-governmental organizations. Reporting that 903 requests have been conveyed to the Ministry since the day they took office, Pekcan stated that, of these 455 have been addressed while 342 which are not within the remit of the ministry are being followed up on.

- “Our goal is paper-free customs”

Pekcan, also pointed out the work regarding foreign trade and customs, stating that they have accomplished their short-term goals as a part of their 100-day action program.

Reporting that they plan on being able to provide access to distribution channels to companies via Turkey Trade Centers to be established in 35 new locations in the coming years, Pekcan stated that “Export Support Offices” have been established with TOBB in 19 provinces and 28 chambers.

Pekcan stated that they have prepared action plans by sector and state with China, Russia, India and Mexico, Africa and Latin America as target countries, “Eximbank has financed 26 of every 100 USD of exports in 2018. Our goal is to raise it to 27 USD. In addition, we have increased the SME share of Eximbank from 57% in 2017 to 70.4% at present and 11,000 companies benefit from Eximbank's opportunities presently.

- TOBB Chamber of Commerce Council President Gürsel Baran

Ankara Chamber of Commerce (ATO) Board of Directors and the TOBB Chambers of Commerce Council Chairman Gürsel Baran stated that it has been a difficult year for Turkey and stated that Turkey, which has grown briskly in the last 15 years, becoming an island of stability in its tumultuous region, is the target of economic attacks.

He stated that the currency-based attacks led to an increase in foreign exchange and interest rates. Baran stated that the storm has been calmed and the markets have stabilized due to the measures taken by the government.