Business World Came Together for Bursa

Bursa Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Alinur Aktaş stated that Bursa stands out with its industry as well as its historical, cultural, tourism and agricultural potential and said, “Bursa is a city that has grown with industries and whose industrial characteristics are at the forefront. Therefore, we aim to reach a more qualified industry in the future. SME OSB, which is one of the most important projects to be more qualified, more value-added, and to be able to export more, especially for the years 2024-2029, is precious and valuable to us. In cooperation with BTSO, we will share it with the relevant parties in the city center without any profit. We are also working on establishing logistics centers at 3 different points. Bursa is a producing and developing city. In this sense, the support you provide to our city from the ministries is very valuable. Our investments continue, especially with the target of reaching Bursa. You have provided your support for TEKNOSAB Junction, Demirtaş OSB Junction, Çalı Yolu and many other projects. We are also expanding our rail system network. We want Bursa to be a reaching, living and producing city. "In this sense, I express that your support and contributions to Bursa are very important, and I thank you for your participation," he said.

“OUR PRIORITY IS TO FIGHT AGAINST INFLATION”

Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz, who started his speech by stating that the world is not going through a good period economically, said, “During the pandemic and the negativities that followed, world growth and trade are below historical averages. They have some recovery. The world economy closed last year with a growth of around 3 percent and the Turkish economy with a growth of 4.5 percent. Our country has entered the league of trillion-dollar economies for the first time. Last year, we closed 1 with an economic growth of 119 trillion 2023 billion dollars. Our per capita income in nominal dollar terms reached 13 thousand 110 dollars. The fact that fixed capital investments increased by 2023 percent in the 4th quarter of 10.7 and the increase in machinery and equipment investments at 14 percent are positive indicators that reveal the strength of our industry and our potential growth. Fighting inflation is our main priority. We aim to reduce inflation while continuing our growth. We closed last year with inflation at 64.8 percent. We believe that permanent welfare increase and sustainable growth are associated with price stability. Our expectation for inflation in 2025 is for it to drop to 's level, and in 2026 we will reach single-digit inflation again. Our estimate is that our 12-month current account deficit will decrease to 32-33 billion dollars by February. In addition, we closed the year 2023 with tourism income of 54,3 billion dollars. Last year, our exports amounted to 256 billion dollars. When we look at our labor markets, our employment rate was 9.1 percent in January. We are experiencing a period in which 49 percent of the workforce is employed for the first time in Turkey's history. I would like to state that the increase in women's employment last year played an important role. "Our total employment increased to 32 million 222 thousand," he said. Stating that Bursa is one of the leading cities in the industry, Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz said that Bursa, which can export 18 billion dollars, is in a very valuable position for Turkey. In this context, Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz congratulated all industrialists and employees and said, “We are investing in Bursa in many areas, especially transportation. We will also focus on our railway investments and connections with OIZs. We aim to increase our competitiveness with improvements in the logistics field. "I congratulate our Metropolitan Mayor Alinur Mayor, who cares about the common sense in the city and adds value to Bursa with his important projects," he said.

“BURSA, THE LEADING CITY IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE COUNTRY”

İbrahim Burkay, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Bursa Chamber of Commerce and Industry, stated that they have implemented more than 11 macro-level projects integrated with the country's goals in the last 60 years with the belief that 'If Bursa grows, Turkey grows'. Stating that they act with common sense, Mayor Burkay said that Bursa is the biggest supporting power of development with the projects they have implemented and a total foreign trade volume of 18 billion dollars, 32 billion dollars of which is export to the country's economy. Reminding that Bursa is one of the cities with the strongest industrial potential in Turkey, Mayor Burkay said, “Bursa is the most important part of sustainable growth, especially with its 46 percent share in the total gross product of the industry. Bursa has always taken a leading position in the development of our country until today. Our aim is to continue Bursa's leadership in the development of our country, especially in the Turkish Century, as it has been until today. In this respect, I would like to state that we do not attach much importance to the SME OIZ protocol, which we signed with our Bursa Metropolitan Municipality Mayor two days ago, for the economy of Bursa and Turkey. "I would like to thank Bursa Metropolitan Municipality Mayor again for the support he has given to our SMEs," he said.