The relationship between Türkiye and the United Kingdom is heading within the course of constructing “a stronger investment environment,” Chris Gaunt, head of the British Chamber of Commerce in Türkiye (BCCT), mentioned Monday.
“Türkiye will still be a priority market for trade, goods and services, as well as investments,” he informed Anadolu Agency (AA).
Following the evaluation of the present free commerce settlement (FTA) between Türkiye and the U.Okay. to make it a extra complete settlement, the choice to begin replace negotiations was taken on July 18, 2023.
The first spherical of the replace negotiations of the FTA between the 2 international locations, which relies on the customs union established practically 30 years in the past and covers primarily industrial items, is deliberate to be held in London on the week of June 10, 2024.
Updating and increasing the FTA to totally different areas will assist increase and diversify bilateral commerce and additional contribute to the robust cooperation and ties between the 2 international locations.
The up to date negotiations purpose to increase the FTA to incorporate areas equivalent to commerce in items and providers, investments and extra agricultural concessions, in addition to complete provisions.
The up to date FTA’s objective is to ascertain a stronger and extra complete authorized foundation for business communities in each international locations and to increase the continuing dialogue and bilateral cooperation.
Bilateral commerce reaches round $28B
Gaunt informed AA that the commerce relations between Türkiye and the U.Okay. have “always been strong and will continue to be strong.”
He mentioned the renegotiated FTA signifies how Türkiye and the U.Okay. wish to develop their commerce within the coming years.
“The basis of the renegotiation is to introduce more sectors into the agreement, which obviously will increase the volume of trade and value,” he mentioned.
Gaunt talked about a decline in bilateral commerce quantity in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic and mentioned that it has now reached roughly $28 billion.
Emphasizing the elevated bilateral commerce quantity, Gaunt mentioned, “We’ve seen an increase in exports from Türkiye to the U.K.; that’s a larger proportion of that increase, so it definitely benefits the economy in Türkiye.”
He identified that the providers sector will acquire extra significance with the up to date FTA, saying: “We want to introduce a more comprehensive agricultural engagement with Türkiye because currently, it’s relatively limited. I believe that the U.K. can provide a lot of support in agriculture, (since) Türkiye has all the ingredients, the environment, and its location (as) a major producer of agricultural products. So, something that I think the U.K. can help Türkiye achieve.”
‘SMEs the spine of any economic system’
Gaunt underlined that Türkiye is sort of a well-liked vacation spot for British vacationers.
He mentioned the tourism sector is “critical” to Türkiye.
About the variety of U.Okay. vacationers coming to Türkiye, Gaunt mentioned, “We saw last summer an increase that, again, going back to COVID-19, there was a decrease, but now it’s growing again, and I don’t see any reason why this summer it wouldn’t continue to grow.”
He talked about that the BCCT performs an necessary function within the commerce between Türkiye and the U.Okay., saying: “Our focus is supporting Turkish small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and bringing them together with SMEs in the U.K. SMEs are the backbone of any economy, and we want to make sure that they have a major role in both countries in building and strengthening our trade relations.”
Source: www.dailysabah.com