Foreign direct investments in Turkey: theoretical and empirical analysis of the period 2001-2011 and prospects

Abstract

Turkey is an example of economic development and restructuring that took place during the decade 2001-2011. During the same period, the net foreign direct investment which has been injected in the country exceeded 110 billion dollars. This study provides initially the broader background, and, in comparison with other regional markets, examines and presents the issue of FDI in Turkey. In this context summarizes the main directions of academic literature relating exclusively to the case of FDI in Turkey. It presents the long and deepening compound approach of the country towards the EU and considers its continuation more as a critical condition, and less as an advantage, in attracting FDI in the future. Through a questionnaire survey analyzes the anatomy, the determinants and prospects of the Greek direct investments in Turkey. The lack of academic research renders additional value to the subject, particularly in a period characterized by critical efforts of rapprochement between the two countries. Finally, through a new approach which is proposed (TIP Model©), quantifies the prospects and the potential size of future FDI inflows in Turkey during the period 2011-2015 on the basis of the growth potential offered by the banking sector and estimates the inflows at 70 billion dollars. Αt last, after having presented the great potential of the country in attracting FDI, the thesis emphasizes the critical importance and necessity of deepening geopolitical stability in the wider region of Turkey for these prospects to be materialized in the medium term.