07 June 2018•Update: 11 June 2018
By Gokhan Ergocun
ANKARA
Turkey attracted $2.2 billion in investments in the first quarter of 2018, according to Investment Support and Promotion Agency (ISPAT) President Arda Ermut Thursday.
Speaking at Anadolu Agency's Finance Desk in Istanbul, Ermut said Turkey also attracted one percent of all foreign direct investments in the world in the last 15 years.
"We do not see a perceptual disorder in investors who invest directly in our country," he said.
He said investors' perception was focused in the long term and Turkey's performance in the last 15 years had influenced this result.
"Based on this performance, there are confidence and long-term investments in our country," he added.
He highlighted that Turkey will be more positive in the second half of the current year in terms of investments.
"73 percent of all investments in the 2002-2010 period were in the services sectors, but in the last period investments in the industry and energy sector have been rising," Ermut said.
Turkey, which attracted $15 billion investments till 2002, has now attracted $194 billion investments since 2002, he said.
He said six of the top 10 investor countries come from the EU but investments from the far east, central Asia, and Gulf countries were increasing.
"This situation is a positive development to reduce Turkey's fragility," he added.
He said the country continues to attract investments despite problems such as the 2016 defeated coup.
Turkey attractive for investors
"57 percent of investments in 2016 came after July," he said.
Meetings of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Prime Minister Binali Yildirim and Turkish ministers with investors abroad produced positive results, Ermut said.
Mentioning credit rating agencies' credit scores on Turkey, he highlighted: "Their influence on investors is limited. Turkey's growth in the last 15 years with records bring into doubt these agencies' scores."
He also said investors, who avoided Turkey in the last 15 years depending on credit rating agencies, incurred losses.
He said Turkey took several steps to reduce the current deficit and increase savings such as incentives for the individual annuity insurance system and decreasing imports.
The 135-billion-Turkish lira ($33.6 billion) incentive package, which will support 23 projects by 19 selected Turkish firms, was revealed in April.
It is expected that the incentive package will narrow Turkey's current deficit by nearly $19 billion as they are expected to boost exports by $6.3 billion and cut imports by $12.3 billion.
Touching on early elections in Turkey, he said the fact that the election was made in a short time and that the investment was weak in the summer period was positive in terms of investments.
Early presidential and parliamentary elections in Turkey are scheduled for June 24.
Turkey needs to continue with growth and dynamism, and it requires to increase value-added production and technology, he said.
"We prioritize investors who are reducing our imports and raising value-added production; Turkey needs to attract investments in petrochemical, information technologies, energy and logistics sectors in the coming period."
