Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

Hisarcıklıoğlu said that there was 7% growth in the first quarter of 2021 and that the economy is expected to grow by around 5-6% throughout this year.

Reminding that exports increased by 38 percent to $85 billion in the first 5 months, Hisarcıklıoğlu stressed that they estimate it would exceed $200 billion in exports for the whole year.

Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that Turkey is among the top 15 countries in the world in vaccination and that the tourism sector is included in the priority vaccination group. “As of June, we have moved to partial normalization. We're hoping for more relief in July. Then we anticipate that there will be new positive developments in tourism.”

Stressing that Macedonia is very important for Turkey, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “The free trade agreement, which has been in force since 2000, has mutually positively affected our trade in industrial products. In addition, basic agreements such as Double Taxation Prevention and Mutual Promotion and Protection of Investments agreements and International Road Transport have been completed. Their presence creates a suitable infrastructure for the development of our bilateral trade and economic relations. We support the expansion of the Free Trade Agreement to include agricultural products and the service sector. Success in this area will double our bilateral trade volume (currently $543 million) in a short time.

Noting that investments by Turkish companies in Northern Macedonia have increased rapidly in the last 10 years, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “Currently, about 100 investor firms are operating. There is an investment of 1.2 billion Euros. Turkish companies employ 5,000 people in Macedonia. Increasing our investments will also affect our bilateral trade. Our contractors undertook 32 projects worth $1.1 billion. We're proud of them. With the Turkey-Macedonia Chamber of Commerce and Industry Forum we will establish, we will increase the volume of our bilateral relations much higher.”

Azeski, head of the Economic Chamber of Northern Macedonia, briefed on the effects of the pandemic in Northern Macedonia, adding that Turkish investments in Macedonia have continued with great success. Azeski said he believes Turkish tourists will come to Northern Macedonia more as the pandemic improves. Azeski said they attach importance to regional co-operation and stressed that the Turkey-Macedonia Chamber of Commerce and Industry Forum established between TOBB and MCHAMBER will contribute to bilateral relations.