Saudi Arabia, Turkey form team to enhance trade ties

ISTANBUL

Saudi Arabia and Turkey have agreed to set up a team to strengthen bilateral trade ties, Saudi trade and industry minister announced in Istanbul Thursday.

Addressing the opening of the Turkey-Saudi Arabia Business Forum, Tawfiq bin Fawzan al-Rabiah said: "We have agreed on establishing a working team between Saudi Arabia and Turkey.

"The team, which will consist of high-level officials, will discuss all cooperation opportunities between the two countries and negotiate to increase the trade volume between the two countries."

Al-Rabiah and Turkish Economy Minister Mustafa Elitas jointly opened the forum, which will focus on trade and economic cooperation between the two countries.

At the forum, business people from both countries will explore investment opportunities in renewable energy, electricity, mining, petrochemicals, finance and banking sectors.

Also, investments in contracting, construction, housing and real-estate projects will be discussed.

"We see that the official visits between two countries have increased. This is significant evidence that shows development of relations between the two countries is highly valued," the Saudi minister said.

Al-Rabiah also spoke about opportunities in the tourism sector between the two countries. "Especially, the number of tourists coming to Turkey from Saudi Arabia has shown a dramatic increase; 16 flights daily are being carried out between the two countries and this is a very significant number. Formerly, it was not possible even to imagine these numbers," he said.

Elitas said Turkey sees Saudi Arabia as one of the largest trade partners in the Gulf region and the world. He noted that the bilateral trade volume with Saudi Arabia in 2015 was far from the desired levels and called for a free-trade agreement between Gulf countries and Turkey, which he said would boost investments and trade among Gulf countries, especially with Saudi Arabia.

Last year, bilateral trade between the two countries was around $6.5 billion, including $3.5 billion imports from Turkey, according to Turkish Economy Ministry.

Turkey mainly exports electrical machinery and equipment, carpets, mats, mineral fuels and oils, while imports from Saudi Arabia include plastic and articles made of it, organic chemicals, aluminum and articles made of it, mineral fuels and oils.

Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz visited Ankara Tuesday during his first official visit to Turkey.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited Saudi Arabia in December 2015 during which Ankara and Riyadh discussed bilateral issues as well as regional matters, particularly the conflict in Syria.