Turkey breaks record in trade gap with China: Boss

ISTANBUL - Anatolia News Agency

Chinese investments in Turkey are important for balance, Özyeğin says.

Almost every country has a trade deficit with China, but none as high as Turkey’s, Hüsnü Özyeğin, owner and chairman of the Fiba Group, has said.

Turkey recorded a trade deficit of $76.7 billion between January and November last year, according to data released by the Turkish Statistical Institute. During the same period, Turkey’s exports to China were $2.5 million, while imports from China were almost 10 times that of exports, at $19.5 million.

According to Özyeğin, the imbalance is in part due to the cheapness of Chinese goods relative to other countries, as the difference between the price of Chinese goods and more expensive goods indicates a hidden trade surplus. “When you purchase a $30 million crane from China instead of purchasing it from Germany for $40 million, it creates a 10 million trade surplus.”

He also suggested that potential Chinese investments in Turkey might contribute to maintaining an economic balance between the two countries.

Özyeğin also expressed his appreciation of low loan interest rates, the “lowest of his 38-year banking career,” he said to Anatolia news agency, adding that Turkish banks received debts from the Italian and Spanish governments with five-to-ten-year terms, proving Turkey’s financial discipline.

When asked about Fibabank’s future plans, he said there is no projection of a foreign partnership or public offering before increasing the capital of the bank, which is currently $400 million, to one billion dollars.