Foreigners put brakes on investment in Turkey
Foreigners invested only $9.1 billion in Turkey in the first nine months of the year, dashing hopes for a year-end total of $16 billion, while Turks invested $4.2 billion abroad.
Turkey is in urgent need of investment to stem rising unemployment. It is all but obvious now that the construction sector alone cannot sustain economic growth and reduce unemployment. Investment is needed from both foreign and local sources to build plants and create jobs. Yet, economic data for the first nine months of the year shows that foreign direct investment (FDI) in Turkey is on the decline, while Turkey’s own investors are increasingly fleeing abroad.
Optimism was high earlier in the year. FDI stood at $5.1 billion in the first four months, and the deputy head of the International Investors’ Association, Akin Kozanoglu, estimated it would reach $16 billion at year-end. The latest data, however, indicates that level is beyond reach unless something unexpected happens.
