The Turks are expanding business ties with Israel. The chiefs of Turkish conglomerate Profilo group of companies will visit Israel this week as guests of the Manufacturers Association of Israel. Manufacturers Association president Shraga Brosh said the Turkish delegation included Profilo CEO Goksen Korezlioglu and other executives.
Profilo is one of Turkey’s largest companies with a turnover of $2 billion a year and 6,000 employees. The company owns consumer electronics, copper wire and textiles factories; shopping centers; industrial buildings; and construction, shipping, and insurance companies.
Israeli industrial exports to Turkey, excluding diamonds, totaled $393 million in the first half of 2005, 4.7% more than in the first half of 2004. Brosh predicts that exports to Turkey will grow 10% in 2005 to $875 million. Israeli imports from Turkey totaled $633 million in the first half of the year, 7.3% more than in the first half of last year.
Brosh said 996 Israeli companies were active in Turkey this year, 7% more than last year.
Profilo was founded in 1954 by Turkish-Jewish Jak Kamhi as a manufacturer of aluminum sidings. It has subsequently expanded to manufacture household appliances, including televisions and microwave ovens. Founded in 1972, Profilo Telra is now one of the largest manufacturers of household appliances in Europe.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on September 12, 2005