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Turning the corner in 2020


Turkey has been through a difficult time, politically and economically, but the signs are that the country is on the up again. Certainly, the freight and logistics industries are continuing to invest for the future.


Difficult politics but economy is on the up again


Following the attempted coup of July 2016, when the army tried but failed to remove President Erdogan from power, and


the latter’s attempts


to strengthen his position subsequently, Turkey is going through one of its politically difficult periods. The military situation on the


Syrian frontier and Turkey’s embroilment in the civil war there have also added to the


instability. However, it should be pointed out that only a handful of provinces are considered no-go areas and that life continues pretty much as normal in the main cities and commercial centres. The


economy, which in


past years routinely recorded annual growth of 5% or so, has also been faltering lately and dipped into recession last year, with the Lira losing around a


third of its value. Lately, though, there have been signs of a recovery, according to Reuters, which in September reported Finance Minister Berat Albayrak as saying that he believes that the economy will return to annual growth in 2019. This follows a marked slowdown in the rate of contraction in the second quarter of 2019. Inflation has also fallen to single digits.


Focus-Economics reports


that the fall in industrial production moderated greatly in the third quarter of 2019, as did retail sales. Moreover, the current account recorded a record-high surplus on a 12-month rolling basis in September, thanks to the fall in the currency. The recent economic blip


also needs to be put into context. The World Bank notes


Chief cargo officer, Turhan


National airline Turkish Cargo has created a pharma corridor between over 400 stations including London, Mumbai, Brussels,


Istanbul, Singapore,


Dubai, Basel, and Amsterdam. Already operating in 15


stations holding the IATA CEIV (Center of Excellence for


certificate,


Independent Validators) Turkish


Cargo


has also recently completed the CEIV renewal process for Atatürk Airport and is similarly qualified for the new Istanbul Airport.


Özen said: “As Turkish Cargo, we carry out the pharmaceutical transports from Atatürk and Istanbul Airports that have been certified by the global air cargo authorities and thus hold the IATA CEIV certificate within the cold chain. While maintaining our successful Dual Hub operations, we carry out the land transport between two airports by using active temperature- controlled vehicles that hold all the necessary international certificates to preserve the cold chain integrity.” Turkish Cargo offers active


and passive solutions for medicine consignments within a -20/+25° C temperature range.


that, overall, Turkey’s economic and social development performance since 2000 has been impressive, with rising employment and incomes. Progress has been made in


tackling inequality and


poverty. Some of its present


difficulties are the problems of prosperity, as the country moves into the next phase of its growth. For many years, Turkey was seen as a low- cost manufacturing centre, outside the European Union


and without the higher wage and overhead costs that that entailed, but close enough to it to rapidly replenish the shop shelves and factory floors in Europe. However, wages and living


standards have risen and the country has developed a more sophisticated economy and manufacturing base. However, mainly due to the


ongoing political situation, Turkey’s dream of itself becoming an EU member seems to be as far away as ever.


High tech is key to growth, says Ekol


Ekol, one of Turkey’s largest logistics and forwarding groups is continuing to invest in infrastructure, in line with the growing economy, the needs of Turkish industry and the expectations and demands of customers, says country manager, Arzu Akyol Ekiz (pictured). Among recent investments


is Ekol’s own Yalova Ro-Ro Terminal, which is a major sea border crossing point in its own right. Incorporating the terminal into the Ekol network brings cost and time savings to shippers and carriers.


The 80,000sq m terminal can


accommodate 500 trailers and, thanks to its location, is the only one with room for expansion in the whole of Turkey, says Ekiz. She adds: “We know that our


country’s foreign trade is growing consistently. That’s why we had planned the second phase of our investment from the very beginning. With the second phase, we will add approximately 50,000sq m of parking space and will have capacity to serve three ships at a time.” E k ol’ s


contract logistics 20 >>


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