According to a recent analysis by the digital commerce corporation Trendyol, Saudi Arabia, Azerbaijan, and the United Arab Emirates held the dominant positions as the primary e-export markets for Turkish businesses during Q1 2024. The metropolises that experienced the highest level of E-export trade activities included Riyadh, Jeddah, Baku, Dubai, and Abu Dhabi.
An astounding number of around 50,000 vendors dispatched approximately 16 million merchandise units to Azerbaijan and the Gulf nations during the initial quarter of the year, as stated by the report. The report specifies that the products primarily featured in this export trade were textiles and kitchen appliances.
The businesses contributing to these considerable export numbers were principally situated in Istanbul, Ankara, İzmir, Bursa, Adana, Gaziantep, Denizli, and Mersin – all located within the thriving heart of Turkey. Collectively, the businesses operating on the Trendyol platform pulled in a massive total of $650 million from exports in the preceding year.
In a separate but related matter, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) – a financial institution under the umbrella of the esteemed World Bank Group, is set to invest up to $7 million into the locally devised e-commerce software platform lvkas. Targeting small- and medium-sized businesses, lvkas facilitates an easy transition into online selling for businesses in Turkey.
The statement emphasizes that this recent IFC investment aims at stirring the digital economy of Turkey whilst escalating the efficiency, productive capacity, and profits of the SMEs operating within the country – with a special focus on those owned or managed by women. This plan encompasses the firm’s expansion into diverse markets such as Germany and other Central and Eastern European nations.
Turkey holds the position of being the IFC’s third-largest exposure worldwide, with a committed portfolio standing at nearly $5.2 billion as of January 2024.
