Turkish Airlines to launch new US route to tighten trade ties

HOUSTON - Anatolia News Agency

Turkish Economy Minister Zafer Çağlayan (L) greets Peter Tichansky, an American businessman, during his visit to New York. The minister has been promoting Turkey’s new incentive system in New York and Houston. AA photo

Turkey’s national airline carrier, Turkish Airlines, would commence direct flights to Houston by the end of 2012 at the latest, Economy Minister Zafer Çağlayan announced during a dinner sponsored by the Texas Turkish-American Chamber of Trade (TTACC) in Houston, Texas.

Houston would be the fifth direct U.S. destination for the carrier as Turkish Airlines already flies to New York, Chicago, Washington D.C and Los Angeles.

On the second day of his U.S. trip on April 17, Minister Çağlayan also announced that global companies Blackberry and Chrysler are interested in investing in Turkey.

Chrysler is looking forward to taking advantage of Turkey’s newly announced incentive scheme in the automotive sector, while Blackberry is interested in coming onboard the Movement to Increase Opportunities and Technology (FATİH) project to distribute tablet PCs and smart boards to 15 million students across the country. Several global technology giants have shown interest in the government’s ambitious plan.

Çağlayan was in Houston, Texas to inaugurate the first Turkish trade attaché office in Houston and was scheduled to fly to Mexico to attend the G-20 talks after his meetings in Houston.
 
A Turkish business delegation accompanies Çağlayan during his trip.

Selling cars 120 countries across the world, Chrysler currently has 33 production plants in four countries. Some 52,000 people are employed at Chrysler facilities. The brand has 9.2 percent market share in the U.S.

The volume total bilateral trade between Turkey and the U.S. reached $21 billion as of 2011, according to the Confederation of Businessmen and Industrialists of Turkey (TUSKON). The volume has increased more than 100 percent since the financial crisis hit the United States in 2008, according to a recent TUSKON report.

The number of US companies active in Turkey stands at 1,200 with  total investment of $6 billion. The number of such companies were 800 in 2007.