Saudi Arabia main market for e-exports: Report

ISTANBUL

Saudi Arabia, Azerbaijan and the United Arab Emirates are the top three e-export markets for Turkish companies in the first quarter of 2024, according to a report by e-commerce platform Trendyol.

The top destinations in those countries were Riyadh, Jeddah, Baku, Dubai and Abu Dubai.

Some 50,000 merchants shipped 16 million products to Azerbaijan and the Gulf countries in the January-March period, according to the report.

Textile and kitchenware were the top-selling items in those export markets.

The top exporting companies were located in the Turkish provinces of Istanbul, Ankara, İzmir, Bursa, Adana, Gaziantep, Denizli and Mersin.

Total exports by merchants on the Trendyol platform amounted to $650 million last year.

 IFC investment in ikas

On a separate note, the World Bank Group’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) is investing up to $7 million in ikas, a locally developed e-commerce software platform for small- and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) in Türkiye, which allows them to easily sell goods online.

The new IFC investment in the innovative digital platform aimed at catalyzing Türkiye’s digital economy, while boosting the efficiency, productivity and revenues for SMEs in the country, particularly those owned or led by women, the IFC said in a statement.

IFC’s funding will enable the company to expand across Türkiye, Germany, and other Central and Eastern European countries, the statement added.

Türkiye represents IFC's third-largest country exposure globally, with a committed portfolio of close to $5.2 billion as of January 2024.