Pandemic to raise demand for Turkish products globally

ISTANBUL

The pandemic period will raise the demand for the Turkish goods globally day by day after, Murat Ozyegin, the head of Turkish conglomerate Fiba Holding, said.

European countries will turn to closer-distance alternatives and reliable countries such as Turkey, said Ozyegin, also the chairman of the Foreign Economic Relations Board's (DEIK) Turkey-Netherlands Business Council.

"As in many countries of the world, as a result of this [pandemic] process, the trend of diversifying supplier countries will also rise in the Netherlands," he noted.

After the COVID-19 pandemic, which first appeared in China last December, several sectors were affected from measures to stem the spread of virus.

Several manufacturing firms in the developed countries faced supply shortages due to the closed factories in China.

"The pandemic showed that the dependence on one country, China, within the global supply chain poses severe risks," he stressed.

Increasing cooperations with Netherlands to be beneficial

He reminded that Turkey and the Netherland's bilateral trade volume has been expanding year by year.

In the first four months of 2020, Turkey's exports to the country amounted to $1.7 billion while imports from it totaled $1.2 billion.

Last year, the bilateral trade was around $9 billion -- $5.8 billion exports and $3.2 billion imports -- official figures showed.

The Netherlands is one of the largest investor countries in Turkey, with 16% or $25.5 billion of the total $160.6 billion foreign direct investments in the last 18 years.

Turkey's foreign investments in the Netherlands totaled $13.8 billion over the same period.

Among the largest 20 world economies -- in terms of GDP -- the Netherlands is 17th and Turkey is 18th, Ozyegin recalled.

Increasing cooperations with the Netherlands will be beneficial for both two countries, he noted.

* Writing and contributions by Gokhan Ergocun.