State Minister Kursat Tuzmen unveiled Türkiye's Three-Year Exports Strategy Plan (2007–2009) at a press conference in Ankara, outlining an ambition to reach $125 billion in annual exports by the end of the plan period.
Tuzmen reported that Türkiye's exports grew 17.1 percent through late December 2006 compared with the same stretch of 2005, reaching roughly $84.3 billion. He noted that the original program target of $79 billion had effectively been surpassed within the first 11 months of the year.
The minister identified an overvalued lira and rapid import growth as factors eroding export competitiveness, calling these among the chief challenges the plan must address. Achieving the $125 billion goal would lift Türkiye's share of global exports to 1.2 percent, up from 0.95 percent recorded in 2005.
Tuzmen described exports as central to economic growth, employment, and living standards, and as a buffer against current account deficits. The strategy is organized around four areas: publicity and marketing, human resources and institutional capacity, foreign trade policy, and macroeconomic policy. Türkiye ranked 22nd among the world's exporters in 2005, having moved up from 25th place in 2002.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this wire report, first published in December 2006, in its own words.