Turkey aims for balanced trade with Malaysia

By P Prem Kumar

KUALA LUMPUR (AA) - Turkey has identified several sectors for boosting exports to Malaysia and striking a trade balance, according to its outgoing ambassador to the Southeast Asian nation.

Basak Turkoglu said steps are being taken to address the gap in export value, which has been to Malaysia’s advantage.

Speaking to the Malaysian national news agency in an interview published Sunday, Turkoglu said Turkey has identified the defense industry, education, technology, food industry, and electrical appliances sectors as potential boosters of Turkish exports.

"Better collaboration in these areas would ensure a rise in Turkish exports to Malaysia.

"Despite the great improvement in bilateral trade on both sides since the signing of a free trade agreement in 2016, a huge gap remains," she said.

Malaysia's exports to Turkey as of September 2017 stood at $2 billion, versus total Turkish exports of only $200 million.

Last year alone, Malaysian-Turkish trade grew 50.2 percent to 8.42 billion Malaysian ringgit ($2 billion), with exports totaling 7.13 billion ringgit $1.63 billion and imports at 1.24 billion ringgit ($292.7 million).

Turkoglu, Turkey’s envoy in Malaysia since November 2014, will leave at the end of this month, to take up a posting in Malta.

The ambassador also expressed her gratitude to the Malaysian government for its solidarity and support towards Turkey during difficult times, referring to the defeated coup attempt by the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) which martyred 250 people, among other attacks.