Turkish businessmen in search of the Argentine market.
“We attach great importance to our relations with the Mercosur countries in the name of economic liberalization and the development of world trade,” said the director of the Turkish Association of Exporters.
BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA, APRIL 23. The director of the Turkish Association of Exporters (TIM, for its acronym in Turkish), Süleyman Kocasert, speaks during the opening of the forum “Argentina-Türkiye Business Forum”, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on April 23, 2018. (Emiliano Limia – Anadolu Agency).
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina
The Embassy of Türkiye in Argentina and the Turkish Association of Exporters held the “Argentina-Türkiye Business Forum” on Monday in the city of Buenos Aires, a business roundtable attended by foreign trade representatives from both countries.
The opening of the event was attended by the president of the Chamber of Importers of the Argentine Republic (CIRA), Rubén García, and the director of the Turkish Association of Exporters (TIM, for its acronym in Turkish), Süleyman Kocasert, who spoke with Anadolu Agency.
“The idea of holding this Argentina-Türkiye Business Forum is to evaluate our possibilities for cooperation,” says Kocasert, who since 2014 has led the association that represents around 70,000 exporters and foreign trade organizations in Türkiye.
“We are a bridge between our Government and our foreign trade representatives. We are working to increase permanent and sustainable exports and global foreign trade. Today, I hope that our dialogue with Argentine organizations unites our businessmen”, he adds.
Türkiye is very interested in Argentina and Mercosur
Argentina is among the Latin American countries with the highest per capita income. With an annual collection that exceeds USD 650,000 million, one of the largest economies in the region.
Kocasert assures that Argentina “in recent years has been integrated with economic policies and the global market (…) It shows a very successful commercial performance in the context of industry, agriculture (…) These successes are closely followed by our country.”
Since President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan came to power, Türkiye began to have a greater presence within the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, not only in the commercial sphere but also in the cultural and political spheres.
“In recent years we have been making bilateral agreements with different countries to build new bridges. As part of this process, we want to develop relationships with the countries of the region, turning this policy into a partnership with Latin America”, says Kocasert.
In this context, the first negotiations for the signing of the Free Trade Agreement between Türkiye and Mercosur were held in Buenos Aires in 2008.
“As exporters, we attach great importance to our relations with the Mercosur countries in the name of economic liberalization and the development of world trade,” says the director of TIM.
Argentine foreign trade figures
Argentina is a country that in 2017 exported USD 58,000 million, being one of the most important suppliers in the world in terms of meat, water, and poultry products. In addition, it has improved the automotive and gemstone sectors.
Imports in Argentina, it was USD 67,000 million in 2017, with the automotive sector of machinery and household appliances being the most important.
“Our country exported only around USD 95 million to Argentina in the automotive, machinery, and electrical equipment sectors”, regrets Kocasert, “however, exports of iron, steel, and textiles were quite successful.
When considering bilateral trade data in general, in the last 3 years Türkiye’s exports to Argentina have averaged USD 140 million. “We are below our potential. There is a decrease compared to the record figure of 320 million dollars reached in 2013”, says Kocasert.
“I believe that after this forum, the businessmen of the two countries will contribute to the development of our mutual business by signing important commercial links,” he concludes.
Kocasert also referred to the high tariffs: “The bureaucratic regulations on some products are, unfortunately, a barrier for us in the development of bilateral trade. By bringing these barriers down to more reasonable levels, we will reduce the disadvantage of our geographical distance and sign much larger deals.”
Finally, he took the opportunity to promote the “Export Week” event, which will take place in December this year and which brought together more than 600 importers and exporters from 70 countries last year in Türkiye.
“The more products we add to our list, the higher our foreign trade volume will be. Therefore, by strengthening our relations, and transferring our experiences to each other, we will promote trade and cooperation between Türkiye and Argentina”, he stressed.
