12 March 2020
Tourist numbers in Turkey up by 16% In January, foreign visitors choosing to visit Turkey increased on a yearly basis by 16.1% with hotel occupancy rates increasing by 6.4% to reach 61.9% when compared to January 2019. Ministry data confirms that in January 2020, Turkey recorded their highest number of foreign visitors ever for January at approximately 1.8 million people.11 March 2020
Russian visitors to use Rubles in Turkey Munir Karaloglu, the governor of the southern city of Antalya in Turkey has confirmed recently that talks are ongoing between the capital city of Ankara and the capital city of Moscow to allow Russian tourists to use their own Rubles currency when visiting Turkey for vacations.11 March 2020
Record numbers using Turkish Railways Turkey’s transport minister confirmed that 2019 saw record increases in passenger and freight transportation on Turkey’s rail network. Cahit Turhan said that the huge success of the railway network is due to the investments that have been made to this mode of transport since 1950. Last year 8.3 million passengers travelled via high speed trains which equated to a 2% increase year on year.07 March 2020
Turkey grants citizenship to 5,000 foreign investors Following on from legislative amendments first put into place two years ago regarding Turkish Citizenship by Investment, new data released shows that there have been over 5,000 successful foreign investors who have been granted citizenship.07 March 2020
Turkish Airlines to increase flights to Mexico Due to increasing demand from Latin American tourists, particularly those from Mexico, Turkish Airlines has made the decision to increase flights to these areas of the world. Additional flights were announced from Istanbul to two cities in Mexico as of August last year.07 March 2020
Five more EU countries granted Turkish Visa exemption Turkey has recently announced that they intend to provide 90-day visa-free entry to tourists from five more European Union countries. This has come after Turkey removed visa restrictions and costs for citizens from the United Kingdom and other countries from within the European Union as part of an initiative to boost tourism.28 February 2020
Turkey to produce 1 million electric cars by 2030 The Ministry of Turkey’s Energy and Natural Resources has recently announced that it is anticipated by 2030 there will be over one million electric cars using Turkish roads. Fatih Donmez said: “By 2022/2023, we hope to see our own indigenous automobile on the roads.”28 February 2020
Facebook to open a new office in Bursa, Turkey Facebook have recently announced the opening of a new office in the city of Bursa, Turkey. Facebook is also set to open many other offices in various other Turkish cities with the sole aim of helping the younger generation.28 February 2020
Sabiha Gokcen Airport to introduce sleeping pods In a bid to keep up with the new Istanbul Airport who recently opened a private area where passengers can rest between flights, Sabiha Gokcen Airport has announced that they will be offering a new form of sleeping pods for passengers to sleep during long connections at the airport.26 February 2020
Turkey to increase flights to Asian countries Turkish Airlines have announced that they have increased direct flights from the city of Istanbul to the historical Silk Road city of Xi’an. They now fly four times a week to the province in China, which is also the home of the famous Terracotta Army. The first flights began on December 30.23 February 2020
Clock ticking for foreign investors as domestic market teeters on the brink Turkey's domestic real estate market has slowed down in the last couple of years as interest rates remained high. But this is set to change, and when it does, Turkish buyers will be back with a vengeance, sidelining foreign investors. The time to invest in Turkish property is now, says Property Turkey director Cameron Deggin.19 February 2020
Turkey’s Gold production set to break records in 2020 The President of the Turkish Gold Miners Association, Hasan Yucel, announced recently that gold production in Turkey is expected to beat the record set last year by the end of this year. In 2019, gold production peaked at 38 tonnes in Turkey, however Yucel estimates that gold production will be around 45 tonnes by the end of 2020.