Istanbul drives economic growth through tourism and international finance forums

Istanbul is seeing significant economic growth through conference tourism and international financial dialogue. According to Şebib Avdağitç, President of the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce, the city has generated over $800 million in foreign exchange from conference tourism over the last five years. Since 2022, Istanbul has hosted approximately 500 conferences, attracting nearly 200,000 participants with an average individual spend of $4,000.

In a separate economic development, the Central Bank of Türkiye organized the Istanbul Economic Forum. Participants, including Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey and Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller, discussed the necessity of strengthening financial markets to withstand global economic and geopolitical shocks. The forum emphasized the importance of flexible monetary policies that balance inflation reduction with economic growth.

Turkish Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek highlighted Turkey's commitment to fiscal discipline and structural reforms to mitigate external shocks, noting that the country's public debt remains relatively low as it pursues its inflation-reduction program.