Turkey is planning its own automobile brand, to secure a 20% market share in the country, or 200,000 vehicles initially, says Turkish Industry Minister Nihat Ergun.
About one-third of cars sold in Turkey are made in the country by international manufacturers, Ergun said in a news conference in Istanbul on Wednesday, adding that 600,000 cars will probably be sold in the country this year.
Turkey, which has no automotive brands of its own, has become a production hub for Ford, Hyundai, Toyota, Renault, and Fiat., whose Turkish unit, Turk Otomobil Fabrikasi AS (Tofas), produces the Doblo minivan in the country.
The Istanbul-based Automotive Manufacturers Association, or OSD, will submit a report to the government this month on local-brand car production, Ergun added.
Production inside Turkey rose 26% last year to 1.1 million vehicles, making the country the top producer in eastern Europe outside Russia, according to the Automotive Distributors’ Association.
Car sales in Turkey will reach 1 million a year “in a few years and the new Turkish brand can have 20% share from the national sales,” Ergun said. “Already there are businessmen who are very much interested in the manufacturing of such cars.” The brand may find a market abroad later, Ergun said.
