Antalya in the south of the country has experienced a growth in the number of companies run with foreign capital, reaching 3,100 in June, a 4.3 percent increase compared to the same period last year.

The Antalya Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ATSO) has revealed that as of June 2017, Russia had the highest number of companies in Antalya with 500 firms.

Russia was followed by Germany with 450 companies, the Netherlands with 182, Saudi Arabia with 176 and Iran with 144. Azerbaijan and the U.K. had 141 companies each. France, in meantime, has 138 companies, Kazakhstan has 112, Ukraine has 108, the U.S. has 84 and Spain has 60. The city also has 59 Italian companies, 57 Syrian and 48 Austrian.

There were also 35 companies with Belgian and Swiss capital, 32 with Danish and Chinese, 31 with British, 29 with Iraqi, 27 with Kyrgyz, 26 with Uzbek, 25 with Turkmen and 24 with Greek capital.

The number of companies with Syrian capital in the city has increased 42.5 percent, the number of companies with Iraqi capital increased 38.1 percent, and the number of companies with Iranian capital increased 26.3 percent in the past year.

Antalya only second to Istanbul

ATSO Chairman Davut Çetin said after Istanbul Antalya has the highest number of companies with foreign capital.

"Antalya is one of the cities we consider a showcase for Turkey. It has a cosmopolitan environment with the influence of its tourism-based economy."

Stressing that a lot of people from different countries, especially Russia and Germany, live in Antalya, work, get married and create jobs there, Çetin said the city's economy offers attractive investment opportunities for potential foreign investors.

Çetin also said that over the past year there were 129 companies that had new foreign partners. The highest increase was seen in companies with Iranian, Saudi and Syrian partners, with 30, 19 and 17 companies, respectively.