Business News Turkey February 2025
Business
M&A volume increases
For 2024, global business consultancy Deloitte reported a 6% year-on-year increase in the volume of mergers and acquisitions in Turkey to USD 8.5 bn. In total there were 423 M&As, with the transaction volume of foreign investors amounting to USD 4.5 bn. Asia-Pacific investors dominated the deal volume with a 35% share, followed by European investors with 27%. The largest deal involving foreign investors was the acquisition of a 65.4% stake in Turkish e-commerce platform Hepsiburada by Kazakh fintech company Kaspi.kz for USD 1.13 bn. Marketing technology platform Insider came in second, raising USD 500 mn with a Series E funding round led by global investor General Atlantic.
Jan. 15, 2025
EBRD continues to allocate highest funding to Turkey
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) invested EUR 2.6 bn in projects in Turkey in the past year, more than in any other country. Along with environmental projects, projects targeting earthquake zones stood out as the main elements underlying the EBRD’s record financing in 2024.
Jan. 16, 2025
Home sales soar in 2024
Last year, a total of 1,478,025 housing units were sold in Turkey, 20.6% more than in 2023. At the same time, the number of housing units sold to foreigners declined by 32.1% to 23,781. Only 10.7% of sales were mortgaged sales. With 16.2%, Istanbul accounted for the largest share in sales. The top nationalities among foreign buyers were Russia, Iran, and Ukraine, in that order.
Jan. 21, 2025
Two investments in Turkish gaming industry
Local mobile game studio Grand Games has raised USD 30 mn in a Series A investment round led by UK-based Balderton Capital. Grand Games’ existing investors Bek Ventures and Laton Ventures as well as angel investor Mert Gür also participated in the round. Founded in 2024, Grand Games has developed two casual games in 10 months with a team of 14. In another investment in the Turkish gaming sector, Swedish video game and technology group Aonic has made a USD 10 mn minority investment in Mega Fortuna, a local startup that develops mobile games and applications. The investment agreement also includes an option to fully acquire Mega Fortuna at a total valuation of USD 70 mn.
Jan. 9-22, 2025
Automotive production contracts
In 2024, vehicle production in Turkey fell 7.0% to 1,365,296 units, whereas domestic sales increased by only 0.1%, to 1,285,632 vehicles. Exports were down 0.5%, while imports were up 9.5%. As of December 2024, the total number of road motor vehicles registered to traffic reached 31.3 million, 51.9% thereof being passenger cars. The average age of all registered cars is now 14.2 years.
Jan. 12-22, 2025
Tourism revenue on the rise
Turkey’s tourism revenue grew 8.3% in 2024, to reach USD 61.1 bn. The number of departing visitors increased by 9.0% to 62.2 million. However, their average expenditure per capita decreased slightly to USD 972, down from USD 979 in the previous year.
Jan. 31, 2025
Politics
Syria lifts import ban on two thousand items
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has met with Ahmed al-Sharaa, the head of the new transitional Syrian government, in Ankara. Erdoğan said, “I believe that by acting in solidarity, we will fully establish an atmosphere of peace and trust where there is no more terror in our common geography.” In addition, Turkish Trade Minister Ömer Bolat announced that the high customs duties temporarily imposed by Syria on Turkish goods have been reduced by up to 70%. Bolat added that the tax reduction will apply to 269 types of goods, and that the new administration has also lifted the import ban on two thousand items of products.
Feb. 5, 2025
Erdoğan receives Steinmeier
President Erdoğan has received German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier in Ankara. Emphasizing the traditionally strong economic and commercial ties between Germany and Turkey, Erdoğan noted that both countries continue to increase their trade volume and encourage mutual investments, adding that the fight against terrorism, irregular migration, visa issues, the defence industry and issues concerning the Turkish community in Germany were also on their joint agenda.
Feb. 5, 2025
Eleven agreements signed between Turkey and Malaysia
President Erdoğan has paid an official visit to Malaysia, where he was welcomed by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. After holding one-on-one and interdelegation meetings, eleven agreements were signed between the two countries on various topics such as energy, disaster and emergency management, and defence. Erdoğan pointed out that the bilateral trade volume, which had been USD 1.7 bn in 2015, has exceeded USD 5 bn in 2024, with the new target being set at USD 10 bn.
Feb. 12, 2025
Economy
Turkish Central Bank continues to cut policy rate
The Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey has announced a further reduction of its policy rate (the one-week repo auction rate) from 47.50% to 45.00%. The bank stated that “the tight monetary stance will be maintained until price stability is achieved via a sustained decline in inflation”.
Jan. 23, 2025
Trade gap narrows in 2024
In 2024, Turkish exports increased by 2.4% over the previous year to USD 261.9 bn, whereas imports dropped 5.0% to USD 344.0 bn. In December 2024, the exports of the Turkish economy rose by 2.1% to USD 23.4 bn, and imports increased by 10.9% YOY to USD 32.2 bn. As a result, the annual trade deficit decreased by 22.7%, down to USD 82.2 bn. In 2024, Turkey’s main export partner was Germany (USD 20.4 bn), followed by the USA (USD 16.4 bn), and the UK (USD 15.3 bn). China was the country where the most imports of the year came from (USD 44.9 bn), ahead of the Russian Federation (USD 44.0 bn), and Germany (USD 27.1 bn).
Jan. 31, 2025
Inflation keeps falling
In January 2025, consumer prices in Turkey were 5.03% higher than in the previous month, with a CPI increase of 42.12% YOY. Thus, annual inflation continued to decline this month. The biggest monthly price hike occurred in health (23.57%), followed by miscellaneous goods and services (7.66%). The only decrease among the main product groups was recorded for clothing and footwear (-5.17%). The highest annual price increase was in education (99.93%). The domestic producer price index (D-PPI) increased by 3.06% on the month, and by 27.20% on the year.
Feb. 3, 2025
Population growth rate increases
According to data announced by the Turkish Statistical Institute, the population of Turkey has risen to 85,664,944 as of Dec. 31, 2024. The population growth rate in 2024 increased to 3.4 per thousand, from 1.1 per thousand in 2023. The official population of Istanbul now stands at 15,701,602, while the second-most populous city is Ankara with 5,864,049 inhabitants.
Feb. 6, 2025
Industrial production continues to improve
In December, Turkey’s industrial production index increased by 7.0% YOY, with the manufacturing sector recording a plus of 6.8%. The largest increases in the manufacturing sector category were in the product groups “other transport equipment” (61.4%), “repair and installation of machinery and equipment” (21.9%), and “fabricated metal products (except machinery and equipment)” (17.4%). The highest decreases occurred in the product groups “basic pharmaceutical products and pharmaceutical preparations” (-19.6%), “machinery and equipment n.e.c.” (-7.0%), and “other manufacturing” (-6.8%).
Feb. 10, 2025
Unemployment rate keeps dropping
In December 2024, approximately 3.0 million people aged 15 and older were officially out of work in Turkey. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate amounted to 8.5%, 0.1 points lower than in the previous month, and 0.3 points lower than a year ago. The labour force participation rate was 54.1% overall, and 36.6% for females.
Feb. 10, 2025
Overview of Monthly Data
Growth Rates
Inflation
