ANKARA
Twenty-five percent of the new companies started up in Turkey in the first seven months of this year were set up by Syrians or partnered by Syrians, according to data from the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey.
According to the data, of the more than 34,685 new companies or associations started up in Turkey within first seven months of this year, 2,695 foreign-partnered.
Some 674, over 25 percent, of foreign-partnered companies were founded directly by Syrians or with their partnership.
Out of the total number of foreign-funded companies in July, 89 were funded from Syria, 29 were Iran-funded, and 25 were financed from Germany.
Germans followed their Syrian counterparts, investing in 198 newly-established companies in Turkey, while Iraq-based firms ranked third with 167 start-up investments.
More than 48.56 percent the companies’ capital came from foreign partners.
More than a third of the foreign-partnered start-ups, 978 of them, are operating in the wholesale, retail trade business and motor vehicle maintenance, manufacturing ranked second with 436 firms, while the construction sector came third with 267 companies, the union's data also showed.
A total of 4,319 new companies were established in Turkey in July, while 905 companies went out of business.
According to the union, the number of newly established companies in July was up by 8.46 percent compared to the same month last year.
The union also said 8,222 companies were shut-down in the country, 32 percent less than the same period of last year.
"That number of new companies indicate that the entrepreneurs are optimistic about the future and we can expect that they would contribute to economic growth," Prof. Dr. Fuat Erdal, from Istanbul Technical University said.
"Companies from Syria and Iraq implies that Turkey has now not only immigrants but also entrepreneurs from these countries, benefiting both sides" added Erdal.
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