For the first time, Turkey’s share in global trade exceeds 1%, Erdogan said

Turkey’s share in global trade exceeded 1% for the first time last year.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters after a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers in Ankara that while global trade in goods decreased by 10% in 2021, Turkey managed to increase exports by 33%.

He noted that Turkey’s annual exports increased six times compared to 2002, when it was $ 36 billion.

He also said that if Turkey’s foreign trade volume was about $ 500 billion in 2021, in 2002 this figure did not reach $ 88 billion.

Last year, the foreign trade deficit narrowed to $ 46 billion, and the export-import coverage ratio reached 83%, up from 51% in the early 2000s.

In the field of tourism, Turkey received 29 million foreign visitors in 2021 and earned $ 24 billion, an increase of 83% and 100%, respectively, compared to 2020.

Erdogan said the country’s new tourism goal is to reach pre-pandemic levels.

He said the government had subsidized 80 billion liras ($ 9.5 billion) in natural gas, 20 billion liras ($ 2.4 billion) in electricity and 65 billion liras to ease the burden of high gas and electricity bills on citizens. $ 7.7 billion) car fuel.

He said: “During the pandemic, oil prices have almost doubled, coal prices have risen 3-5 times, natural gas prices have increased 6-10 times, metal and mineral prices have risen by 50% and agricultural prices by 25%.

“Many countries have had to increase electricity tariffs by an average of three times due to rising energy prices, and we have taken a path to protect our citizens.”

– The goal is to become one of the top 10 economies in the world

“We support companies that maintain the number of employees in the last 12 months and undertake to employ our high school or university graduates for at least 12 months for 100,000 liras ($ 7,659),” Erdogan said.

Referring to the country’s Turkish lira deposit accounts protected by foreign currency, he said that citizens have so far invested 78 billion Turkish lira ($ 5.97 billion) in these accounts.

Stating that global trade decreased by 5.3% in 2020 and Turkey grew by 1.8% in 2020, Erdoğan said that 7.4% in the first quarter of 2021, 22% in the second quarter and 7.4% in the third quarter. did. Double-digit growth in 2021.

“With Turkey’s performance, we are gradually approaching the goal of becoming one of the top 10 economies in the world,” he added.

According to him, in 2022, the salaries of civil servants will increase by 30.5% and the minimum pension will increase from 1,500 Turkish lira ($ 114) to 2,500 Turkish lira ($ 191).

Referring to inflation, he said that the United States has seen the highest inflation rates in the last 40 years, Germany in 30 years and the United Kingdom in 10 years. “Like others, our country faces the reality of inflation.”

“We regret that our annual inflation has reached 36%. We intend to break the neck of inflation, which we previously reduced to 6% in our country, and we will reduce it to single digits again as soon as possible,” he said. .

“We have taken special measures … An increase in the minimum wage by 50% is an example of this,” he added.