Speaking at the SteelOrbis 2018 Fall Conference & 79th IREPAS Meeting held in Istanbul on September 16-18, Prof. Dr. Emre Alkin, vice president at Altınbas University, said that there will be more wars and tensions in the 21st century compared to the previous century, but added that the consequences will not be bad for business. He indicated that what we are experiencing currently is because the US is trying to be less dependent on abroad for its consumption, and so is seeking to reduce imports.
Commenting on the Turkish economic situation, Prof. Alkin said, “The main problem is some companies who took foreign exchange loans because the interest rates are so low did not think about the history of the Turkish economy. Now they say they cannot pay. The problem in Turkey is not the foreign debt, the problem is the foreign debt of companies who have no dollar or euro revenues”. He pointed out that foreign direct investment is flowing permanently into Turkey, not temporarily. “We have conflicts with the US, but it is still the biggest investor. We still have trade relations with countries we have conflicts with”, he added.
Regarding the announcement of the Turkish government that contracts will have to be concluded in Turkish liras instead of in US dollars, Prof. Alkin said, “This should have been done before not today. It was a bit of a late call”.