Turkey wants to be part of "Make in India" programme, its Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek said during his visit to India on Monday. Simsek is in India to enhance trade ties between the two democracies.
Trade between India and Tukey currently amounts to $7.5 billion.
The current scenario sees India run a significant trade surplus against Turkey. The Turkish Minister insisted that he was not bothered about the imbalance in the trade, but the low volume of trade and investment.
India is a very important and desirable strategic partner, Simsek said in an interview with BusinessLine in Mumbai. He invited Indian investments in energy, particularly in renewable energy and information technology.
Simsek was in Mumbai to meet some of the corporate bigwigs in a bid to invite them to invest in Turkey. He will meet with his Indian counterpart, Arun Jaitley, on Wednesday in Delhi.
The Minister said that the both countries have a lot to learn from each other and can share their expertise in different sectors.
Turkey has a good manufacturing base and a supportive eco system that could support Indian companies planning to expand into Central Asian markets and the European market.
Simsek added that Turkey was willing to share expertise in infrastructure and construction industries, where its local companies have considerable global exposure.
He said that as Turkey was a member of the customs union with European Union, a free trade agreement (FTA) that India may sign with EU would be like making a deal with Turkey.
Simsek further noted that the Turkish economy has become well-diversified and with the help of China and India it could be among the top beneficiaries of lower oil prices.
