ANKARA - Turkey will speed up exerting efforts to develop foreign trade with Japan in 2003. Japan had announced 2003 year as ''Turkey Year''.
When Turkish firms are encouraged to join fairs in Japan, purchase delegations from Japan will be invited to Turkey.
Three Turkish trade delegations will go to the country to promote Turkish export goods and Turkish firms will join five fairs in Japan in 2003.
Products including olive oil, hazelnut and pasta will be promoted in FOODEX International Food and Beverage fair which will be held in Tokyo in March. A delegation from special food sector will go to Tokyo to promote olive oil, dried fruit and beverages.
Three purchase delegations from Japan were invited to Turkey. The delegations will meet with exporter firms and visit production facilities.
A Turkish delegation which will be organized by Istanbul Textile and Ready-to-Wear Clothing Exporter Associations will go to Japan to promote house textile, textile, ready-to-wear clothing and leather products in Heimtextil Japan 2003 fair which will be held in June.
A trade delegation on glass, ceramic and bath products will be organized to join Home Show International Materials and Interior Equipment Exhibition Tokyo in November 2003.
Turkey exported products worth of 149.5 million U.S. dollars to Japan, while Turkey imported products worth of 1 billion 620.5 million U.S. dollars from that country in 2000. Turkey exported products worth of 120.6 million U.S. dollars to Japan while it imported products worth of 1 billion 307.3 million U.S. dollars from Japan in 2001. In this year, Turkey exported products worth of 75 million U.S. dollars to Japan while it imported products worth of 981.6 million U.S. dollars from Japan.
Turkey mostly imported motor vehicles, spare parts, tankers, air conditioners, work machines, textile machines, iron-steel pipes, photography materials and chemicals from Japan.
The country mostly exported tobacco, food products and textile machines to Japan.
Turkey aims to increase its export to Japan with promotions in 2003.