Turkey News January 2023
Business
Massive Bio raises new investment capital
Massive Bio, an AI-powered platform connecting cancer patients and oncologists to clinical trials, has raised USD 16.5 mn in investment capital in a seed round led by Revo Capital. Other participants were Kenan Turnacıoğlu, IFC (World Bank), DEG-Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH, TFS Services, ImpactAssets, and SiteGround Capital. Consequently, the total investment capital of Massive Bio has reached USD 23.3 mn since being establised in 2015 with the participation of Turkish co-founders.
Dec. 12, 2022
Schattdecor to further invest in its Turkish plant
The Bavarian company Schattdecor, a producer of decors and surfaces for the woodworking products industry, is going to build a new warehouse in its plant in Kocaeli in 2023 with an investment of TRY 100 mn. Selçuk Ülger, General Manager of Schattdecor Turkey, said that they will be focusing on North Africa and Eastern Europe to develop new markets.
Dec. 19, 2022
Retirement age requirement dropped
The Turkish government has finally yielded to demands to abolish the retirement age requirement for citizens who officially entered employment before September 8th, 1999, when the law regulating retirement requirements was changed. Through this move, more than 2.2 million Turkish citizens have become eligible to retire immediately. It has been calculated that the new system will cost the treasury in excess of TRY 100 bn.
Dec. 29, 2022
Turkish contractors’ project volume decreases in 2022
The Turkish Contractors Association has announced that the project volume of the Turkish contracting industry has decreased by 39% to USD 17.8 bn in the past year due to the negative impact of Russia’s war against Ukraine. The shares of the main client regions in the project volume were CIS 37.6%, Europe 24.5%, Middle East 18.5%, and Sub-Saharan Africa 12.7%.
Jan. 10, 2023
Borusan EnBW to invest massively in EV charging network
Borusan EnBW, a partnership of Turkish Borusan Holding and German EnBW AG, has started its activity as electric vehicle charging network operator. The company is planning to provide service in more than 500 locations initially, and to extend it to 7,000 locations following its investments. The investment volume is expected to reach TRY 5 bn by 2030.
Jan. 12, 2023
Significantly more international M&As in 2022
Business consultancy Deloitte has reported a 14% increase in the volume of M&As in Turkey over 2021 to USD 11.5 bn in 2022. In total there were 450 mergers and acquisitions, with the transaction volume of foreign investors slightly decreasing to USD 5.7 bn, 3% less than in the previous year. Gulf investors led the deal volume with a share of 41%, closely followed by European investors with 39%. The largest deal sealed by a foreign investor was BBVA’s acquisition to increase its stakes in Garanti Bank with almost USD 1.5 bn. The investment round led by Mubadala of UAE into the e-commerce giant Getir came second, with USD 768 mn.
Dec. 16, 2022 – Jan. 13, 2023
Politics
Erdoğan meets with Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan leaders
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has attended the Summit of Heads of State of Turkey-Azerbaijan-Turkmenistan, held in Awaza, Turkmenistan. Five mutual agreements have been signed by the three countries in areas including trade, culture, energy, and transport.
Dec. 15, 2022
Economy
Net minimum wage raised by more than half
In view of the high inflation rate, the competent commission has agreed on a regular increase of the minimum wage by 54.7% as from January. The statutory minimum wage now amounts to TRY 10,008.00 gross – translating into TRY 8,506.80 net – with the cost to the employer being TRY 11,759.40.
Dec. 22, 2022
Turkish Central Bank keeps interest rate constant
The Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey has kept its policy rate (the one-week repo auction rate) constant at 9.00%. According to the bank’s statement, the current policy rate is adequate considering the increasing risks with respect to the global demand.
Dec. 22, 2022
14.0% import hike in November
In November 2022, the exports of the Turkish economy increased by merely 2.1%, while imports were up 14.0% compared to the same month of the previous year (YOY). With exports of USD 21.9 bn, and imports of USD 30.7 bn, the trade deficit rose by 60.7% to USD 8.8 bn during the same period. In November, Germany remained Turkey’s primary export partner (USD 1.9 bn), leading the USA (USD 1.5 bn) and Iraq (USD 1.3 bn). Russia continued to be the country accounting for the most imports to Turkey (USD 4.7 bn), well ahead of China (USD 3.1 bn) and Germany (USD 2.2 bn).
Dec. 30, 2022
Inflation decreases
In December 2022, consumer prices in Turkey increased by 1.18% over the previous month, and the CPI went up by 64.27% YOY. The highest monthly increase took place in health (5.91%), followed by furnishings and household equipment (4.56%). The decreases among the main product groups occurred in transportation (-4.14%) and clothing and footwear (-1.34%). The biggest annual price increment was in housing (79.83%). The domestic producer price index (D-PPI) decreased by 0.24% monthly and increased by a full 97.72% YOY.
Jan. 3, 2023
Non-seasonally adjusted unemployment remains unchanged
In November 2022, some 3,504,000 people in Turkey aged 15 and older were officially out of work. The non-seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 9.9% was the same as in the previous month but amounted to a decrease of 1.0 points YOY. The labour force participation rate increased to 54.4% in total, and to 32.2% for females.
Jan. 10, 2023
Industrial production decreases by 1.3%
In November, Turkey’s industrial production index has decreased by 1.3% YOY, with the manufacturing industry recording a contraction of 0.4%. The biggest increases in the manufacturing industry category occurred in the product groups “computer, electronic and optical products” (73.1%), “leather and related products” (32.8%), and “other transport equipment” (16.7%). The highest decreases were reported in the product groups “basic metals” (-20.5%), “textiles” (-18.7%), and “paper and paper products” (-9.0%).
Jan. 10, 2023
Overview of Monthly Data
Growth Rates
Inflation
