On March 1, 2012, in collaboration with the Washington Network Group (WNG), the American Turkish Council hosted a seminar entitled “Doing Business in Turkey”. The event was held at the Fulbright Conference Center in the law offices of Hogan Lovells. The moderator was Cynthia Bunton from the WNG International Steering Committee; the four presenters were ATC President Ambassador James H. Holmes (Ret.), Senior Commercial Counselor of the Turkish Embassy, Abdullah Koten, Senior International Trade Specialist with the Department of Commerce Ryan Barnes, and Marcia Wiss, partner at Hogan Lovells.
On March 1, 2012, in collaboration with the Washington Network Group (WNG), the American Turkish Council hosted a seminar entitled “Doing Business in Turkey”. The event was held at the Fulbright Conference Center in the law offices of Hogan Lovells. The moderator was Cynthia Bunton from the WNG International Steering Committee; the four presenters were ATC President Ambassador James H. Holmes (Ret.), Senior Commercial Counselor of the Turkish Embassy, Abdullah Koten, Senior International Trade Specialist with the Department of Commerce Ryan Barnes, and Marcia Wiss, partner at Hogan Lovells.
ATC President Holmes opened the session with an overview of US-Turkish commercial relations, future trade and investment prospects for US investors. Turkish Commercial Counselor, Abdullah Koten, discussed Turkey as a trading partner and its role as a gateway to Central Asia, the Mediterranean, and the Middle East. He also pointed to the key sectors that the Turkish government sees as most relevant to US businesses. Senior International Trade Specialist Ryan Barnes itemized challenges and opportunities in doing business in Turkey and demonstrated how Commerce and other US trade agencies can be of assistance to US businesses. Marcia Wiss closed the session with an insight into personal commercial experiences in Turkey.
The Turkish economy experienced an exponential growth between 2000 and 2011. In fact, an overview of the Turkish economy not only portrays Turkey as the 16th largest economy in the world and 6th in the EU, but also shows that Turkey is the fastest growing economy among the OECD countries. Although the 2009 financial crisis had a negative impact on a global scale, Turkey experienced a fast recovery in 2010-11 with significant increases in the GDP and rates of employment, and reductions in rates of inflation. Foreign trade reached new highs in 2011 with a significant increase in imports and exports. Turkey’s main import partners in 2011 include Russia, Germany, China, the U.S. and Italy. A persistent trade deficit, however, was a major macro-measure of concern.
Amb. James H. Holmes: Turkey and the U.S. have long historical ties in national security and foreign policy, but their commercial ties were lagging until recent years. For the past several years, bilateral economic and commercial relations between Turkey and USA have been on a positive trend in volume and value. Turkey benefits from a stable government that promotes business and economic growth. However, negative stereotypes about Turkey are harming investment opportunities in Turkey which are considered highly risky by some. Turks must overcome ignorance and suspicion on the part of the American buyer about Turkish products and business management to be successful in the American marketplace. U.S. companies need to be fully aware that the Turkish economy is now in a new era of recovery and economic growth, and that the testimony of business success stories of US-Turkish companies are the best antidotes for negative perceptions and stereotypes.
Minister Counselor Abdullah Koten: With its strategic position, Turkey is not only an energy corridor between suppliers and consumers, but also a crossroad to Central Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa. This geostrategic location promotes the growth of a free and fair trade based economy with connections to strategic areas of the world’s economy. Thus, Turkey represents a stepping stone on reaching all these countries and their markets. Reasons to invest in Turkey include sound economic performance, young and dynamic population, qualified and competitive labor force, liberal and innovative investment climate, Infrastructures, central location, Energy corridor and terminal in Europe, low tax rates and incentive facilities, customs union with the EU, and a strong open domestic market.
Ryan Barnes: Turkey is a stable, booming economy with great business climate indicators. However, challenges of the Turkish market include lack of notification of new government regulations, lack of regulation of Intellectual property rights (IPR), and unpredictable customs clearance procedures. Nevertheless, the U.S. government is available to assist American companies set their businesses in Turkey. Market access compliance (MAC) was established to facilitate the installation of US companies in Turkey. All procedures are available at www.trade.gov. Turkey’s Investment Support and Promotion Agency is also doing an outstanding job supporting and representing the interests of the investment community in Turkey.
Marcia Wiss: Turkey’s economy grew an average of 6% per year from 2002 through 2007 – one of the highest sustained growth rates in the world. After the 2008 crisis it had a fast recovery with 5.9% economic growth in the fourth quarter of 2009 and 8.9% growth in 2010. A country of 75 million people with the level of economic growth potential demonstrated by Turkey cannot be ignored.
The American-Turkish Council extends its appreciation to the Washington Network Group, the participants, and ATC members for participating in this informative business seminar.
PRESENTATIONS:
Marcia Wiss, WNG (pdf)
James Holmes, ATC (pdf)
Turkish Embassy (pdf)
Ryan Barnes, USDC (pdf)
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