Press Releases

Embassy Press Statement

TOBB-U.S. Chamber Project on Doing Business in the U.S. Market

Ankara, July 17, 2006 

The Embassy of the United States of America is pleased to announce that the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB), has partnered with the US Chamber of Commerce in cooperation with the US Government, to design and realize a  series of business seminars for Turkey’s small and medium-sized businesses on how to do business in the US market. 

The project is being financed by a $400,000 contract from the U.S. Government’s Agency for International Development (USAID).  The project is intended to increase trade between the United States and Turkey, as well as to seed a long-term relationship between TOBB and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. 

Seminars will be held July 24 in Ankara and July 26 in Kayseri, and September 11-15 in Izmir, Gaziantep and Istanbul.  In each city, local business chambers will host the program under TOBB's guidance.  The seminars will be geared to inform the greatest number of companies possible on such issues as US business culture, export and import resources, non-tariff issues, legal considerations, data resources, marketing and website development, finance, strategic development and business management tools.  Speakers and panelists will include executives of Turkish firms currently doing business in the United States; executives of American companies doing business in Turkey; local chamber executives from the United States; experts in international business, law, and marketing; and government officials of both countries.

The project also entails a survey of Turkish business to be conducted by the US Chamber and TOBB in order to help the US Chamber compile a comprehensive guidebook in Turkish for Turkish companies on doing business in the US. 

We are pleased that bilateral trade between our two countries has been growing.  Annual two-way trade is now about $11 billion.  This TOBB-US Chamber of Commerce initiative is designed to help this trade grow further.

The project symbolizes US-Turkish friendship and will support further deepening in the bilateral economic relationship.  The US Embassy wishes to express its gratitude to TOBB and the U.S. Chamber for their hard work on this project.