Turkey top manufacturing location in Europe: Report

ISTANBUL

Turkey has been named the best place to site manufacturing plants in Europe, ranking eighth in the world in a fresh report from property consultant Cushman & Wakefield. 

China has lost its top position in the world to Malaysia due to a rise in labor costs, according to the report, titled “Where in the World? Manufacturing Index 2015.” 

“Turkey has climbed three places to eighth position in the world. It is positioning itself at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, Russia and Africa and has benefitted from significant investment in its infrastructure,” said the report. 

The index aims to identify the parameters manufacturers consider to be critical when assessing the most suitable locations to expand or relocate their plants and facilities.

“This report has shown Turkey’s high potentials to become a manufacturing and logistics hub in the future, clearly,” said Cushman and Wakefield managing partner Tuğra Gönden, in a written statement on Dec. 21.

While Pacific Asian (APAC) countries still dominate the top half of the index, highlighting the importance of the region as a global manufacturing powerhouse, there remains some underlying volatility. 

Rising labor and operational costs in China, the world’s largest manufacturer in terms of output, are adding to the attractiveness of lower-cost regions with Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam all ranking strongly as a result, said the report. 

The report has named Malaysia and Taiwan as the first and second best places, respectively, to site manufacturing plants, followed by China. 

Rising global operating costs are contributing to a trend for re-shoring facilities to the west, with stronger prospects for the U.S. (ranked fourth) and certain European locations as well.