Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEİK) President Nail Olpak stated that they brought together 30 American companies with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and said, "We are talking about senior managers here. We are talking about 30 of America's 100 largest companies doing business with Turkey. There was a very positive picture indeed." he said.
In his evaluation to the AA correspondent, Olpak reminded that they organized the 19th Turkey Investment Conference in New York and pointed out that relations with the USA have been going very well in recent years and that the event is one step ahead of previous years in terms of both the number of participants and the participant profile.
Stating that approximately 450 people attended the reception they held at the New York Public Library, Olpak said, "We made it a tradition, too. It has now become a classic. We have been holding it there for the last 3 years. I would also like to thank the institutions that supported us there." he said.
Olpak stated that they brought together 30 American companies with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and said, "We are talking about high-level managers here. We are talking about 30 of America's 100 largest companies doing business with Turkey. There was a really positive picture." he said.
Noting that they held seven meetings chaired by President Erdoğan, Olpak explained that US companies with investments in Türkiye want to continue their current investments and make additional investments.
Nail Olpak stated that President Erdoğan highlighted 5 topics during his contacts: reliable supply chains, reshaping of energy routes, changing trade corridors, the reconstruction process in the region where Türkiye is located, and defense and advanced technology, and stated that the business world should also take steps within this framework.
Türkiye's 2040 energy vision was revealed and the HIT-30 Program became one of the most interesting topics.
DEİK President Olpak stated that they brought the companies together in the meetings held with the participation of the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar and the Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır, and noted that he organized serial meetings with the participation of the Minister of Commerce Ömer Bolat, the Minister of Treasury and Finance Mehmet Şimşek and the President of the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey Fatih Karahan.
Stating that they had a nice meeting with the Cyber Security Directorate, Olpak said, "This event was held with investors from abroad for the first time after the establishment of the Cyber Security Directorate. I think it is extremely important." he said.
Olpak reminded that Türkiye's 2040 energy vision, including energy transmission lines, was put forward in the framework drawn by the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Bayraktar, and pointed out that the HIT-30 Program of the Ministry of Industry and Technology is one of the most interesting topics.
"It is better to focus on certain sectors in Türkiye-US trade."
Recalling that a bilateral trade volume target of 100 billion dollars was set with President Erdoğan during the first term of US President Donald Trump's presidency, Nail Olpak said, "At that time, there was a total bilateral trade of 20 billion dollars. By 2026, we will exceed 50 billion dollars. We were able to achieve an increase of over 150 percent." he said.
Olpak stated that it would be better to concentrate on certain sectors in Türkiye-USA trade and said that automotive and spare parts, furniture, jewellery, health and aviation are important headings.
Pointing out the importance of Turkish Airlines' (THY) order agreement covering up to 150 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, Olpak said, "Turkey is one of the countries with the highest number of embassies in the world in terms of embassies. The number of aircraft for easy flying is one of the important factors. When we increase trade, we see that tensions between countries decrease a little more and the temperature increases. I think, when we evaluate that picture from this perspective, it is of course a good step." made the statement.
US companies have investments of over 60 billion dollars in Türkiye
Nail Olpak stated that the investments of the USA in Türkiye are over 60 billion dollars and that the fact that the investments of Turkish companies in the USA have exceeded 14 billion dollars is extremely important in terms of scale.
Noting that they encourage Turkish companies to invest, Olpak said, "This is the only way the concept we call internationalization can be realized; you cannot achieve this only through trade in goods or services. As much as we want international investment to be in Türkiye, it is very natural for our investors to increase their investments in the international arena and it is an element that we encourage." he said.
Explaining that Turkish companies do not have any problems in terms of courage, speed, quality and price, they can be competitive, but it is difficult to compete with some countries in financing opportunities, Olpak said that the strong financing opportunities of the US Exim Bank can be used more effectively in joint projects of Turkish and American companies.
Olpak said that they analyzed the impact of the US's trade policies, especially with China, on Türkiye's trade and other export markets, and that they would share the results of the prepared study at the press conference they will hold next week.
