Turkey’s foreign trade minister maintained its critical stance on valued currency on Wednesday.Thursday, 21 October 2010 11:59
Turkey’s foreign trade minister maintained its critical stance on valued currency saying on Wednesday that Turkey was the only country whose currency was gaining in value.
State Minister for foreign trade Zafer Caglayan said that Turkish lira (TL) was gaining in value, which was against Turkey.
“Currencies of other countries are also gaining in value, but not as much as Turkey,” Caglayan told reporters in New York.
Caglayan said the world economy was shifting towards developing countries from developed countries, and Turkey had to follow that process.
On Turkish-U.S. relations, Caglayan said Turkish exports to the United States were 3.2 billion USD and its imports were 8.5 billion USD in 2009, and Turkish imports from the United States were up three-folds from 2002 to 2009.
However, its exports had not risen and Turkey had a foreign trade deficit with the United States, Caglayan said.
Turkey made 3.35 billion USD of exports to the United States and 3.1 billion USD of imports in 2002.
Caglayan said Turkey had chosen New York, Texas, California, Illinois, Florida and Georgia as target markets, and the U.S. companies had 6.5 billion USD of investments in Turkey and were eager to invest in particulary energy.
There are more than 1,000 U.S. companies and 25,000 international investors in Turkey.
Caglayan said Turkey had drawn 85 billion USD direct foreign capital between 2003 and 2010, and more than 70 percent of that capital had come from Europe.
“Europe has seen Turkey as its product and service base,” Caglayan also said.
Caglayan will proceed to Canada after completing talks in New York.
AA