Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek was expected to travel to Singapore on Thursday, kicking off a two-day visit to the Southeast Asian economic hub where he is set to meet with numerous investors and hold bilateral official meetings.
The minister is set to meet Lawrence Wong, the prime minister and minister for finance of Singapore, and will be received by Singapore's President Tharman Shanmugaratnam during his visit, Anadolu Agency (AA) reported.
As part of his contacts, Şimşek will also meet with representatives of the real sector in Asia and managers of global investment funds as part of his "road show," which he will conduct for the first time in Asia.
The visit to Singapore comes shortly after the minister visited London, where he presented investors with the Turkish economic policy pivot and main economic agenda.
Türkiye has been seeking to court investors after it started reversing years of loose policy following the general and presidential elections last May. It has been pursuing efforts to rein in elevated inflation, curb budget and current account deficits and rebuild foreign exchange reserves.
During the meetings in Singapore, the minister is similarly expected to introduce the investors to the economic program and invite companies and funds to invest in the country.
Led by Şimşek, the new economic administration appointed last year introduced several measures including lifting interest rates, and boosting fiscal policy efforts in a bid to contain inflation and attract fresh capital to the country.
The companies Şimşek will meet with in Singapore are also important in terms of direct investment potential. A comprehensive free trade agreement exists between Singapore and Türkiye and was signed in November 2015 during then-Prime Minister Lee’s visit to Türkiye on the occasion of the G-20 leaders summit.
The positions of the two countries are also strategically important for each other. While Turkish companies see Singapore as a base for the Asian market, Türkiye is also seen as an important center for Singapore-based companies to access the European Union market.
It is expected that the minister will also attend and speak at the plenary meeting of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to be held in Singapore, AA said, ahead of a decision by the international crime watchdog on whether to remove Türkiye from a "gray list."
A decision to remove Türkiye from this "gray list" of countries and territories that require increased scrutiny would be a boost to its economic turnaround plan after the FATF task force downgraded the country's status in 2021.
Turkish officials have said that they expect Türkiye to be removed, having said that any other decision would be politically motivated. A Turkish Treasury source had previously told Reuters that Şimşek would attend the FATF meeting.
In a statement in February, the FATF said that Türkiye "has substantially completed its action plan" and warranted an on-site assessment. Late in February Şimşek said they have "successfully completed our technical studies to remove our country from the gray list."
A delegation from the FATF visited Türkiye last month to evaluate its actions to prevent money laundering and illegal financing. A positive outcome and removal from the list could boost the Turkish lira and assets.
