Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

Hisarcıklıoğlu made statements to journalists about the TOBB Trade Center project and exports to the USA in Antalya, where he was in Antalya for the Economic Consultation Meeting of the 29^th Term Assembly Members of the Ankara Chamber of Commerce (ATO).

Stating that the foundations of the idea of trade centers were laid in 2012, inspired by the successful exporter countries of the world such as Germany, the USA and South Korea, Hisarcıklıoğlu said that the project was put into practice in 2021 with the support of the Ministry of Trade.

Stating that the first center was opened in Chicago, USA, Hisarcıklıoğlu said: “Our 100 exporter companies continue their activities in 17 different sectors such as machinery, technology, construction materials, textiles, automotive spare parts, furniture and food. As the world's largest economy, the US offers unique opportunities for the Turkish business world. We are late to the US market, which imports 3.2 trillion dollars worth of goods. They have money, they buy goods, goods are sold to them. It is a great opportunity for the future of our country. 100 billion dollars of furniture is imported. We are strong in furniture, but capacity is insufficient. Our furniture manufacturers are working to increase capacity.”

Pointing out that there are opportunities in the US market with a per capita income of 86,000 dollars and a gross domestic product of 29 trillion dollars, Hisarcıklıoğlu said that especially the construction materials sector stands out with an annual import volume of 120 billion dollars.

Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that in the last 5 years, exports to the US have increased by 46 percent to 14.8 billion dollars and said, “Although this rate of increase is valuable, our total share in US imports is still below 5 per thousand. This shows that we still have a lot of work to do.”

Pointing out that the foreign trade volume between Türkiye and the US is at the level of 30 billion dollars, Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that the target of 100 billion dollars trade volume is an achievable goal.

Hisarcıklıoğlu emphasized that in order to achieve this goal, they plan to increase technology and service exports, establish new sector-oriented logistics centers and bring more Turkish companies to the US market and said, “The US has great potential in areas such as furniture and household goods, food and agricultural products, automotive spare parts. In the new period, the US administration is expected to place more emphasis on production-oriented growth in global trade. In this context, new collaborations and market opportunities may arise for Türkiye, which has a dynamic production capacity.”

Explaining that the TOBB Trade Center provides services with 12 different logistics and warehousing centers across the US in addition to its warehousing operations in Chicago, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “We aim to extend our services to other states such as Los Angeles, New York, Miami, Houston in order to spread the experience and successes achieved in Chicago to the entire US continent.”

Stating that the trade center in the USA has now turned into a Turkish export ecosystem, Hisarcıklıoğlu said: “This ecosystem has become the dynamo of our exports with its internal and external strategic collaborations, experience transfers and the strong Turkish brand image it creates. Our TOBB Trade Center is waiting for new success stories to be written by our exporter companies with the supports and services that Turkish companies can benefit from whether they have an existing operation in the US or no operation at all.”

Referring to the reconstruction of Syria, Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “Turkish companies can take part in the reconstruction of this place. Turkish business people are doing successful work in the most dangerous geographies of the world. For example Afghanistan and Iraq. There is no one braver than us in this region.”