Chinese Bank's Branch ICBC Turkey Named International Bank of the Year in Turkey

ISTANBUL, Dec. 20 : ICBC Turkey, a branch of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), on Thursday was named the "International Bank of the Year" for its "distinguished contributions" to Turkey's economy. At an awarding ceremony in Istanbul, Binali Yildirim, speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, granted the award to Gao Xiangyang, chairman of ICBC Turkey.

The speaker himself and Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev were named "the Statesman of the Year" and "the Statesman of the Year in Central Asia" respectively by the Turcomoney magazine, Turkey's leading journal on finance and economy.

Some Turkish businessmen, institutions and exporting companies were also honored with awards for creating significant job opportunities.

Granting awards for those making contributions to Turkey and the world is a traditional program of Turcomoney, which is marking its 7th founding anniversary.

ICBC Turkey, which was established after ICBC purchased a majority of shares of Turkey's Tekstilbank in May 2015, is a business institution that provides all-round financial services, as it is licensed for commercial banking, investment banking and asset management.

ICBC is China's largest commercial bank as well as the world's largest bank by assets.

Turkey's geographical location holds a significant position in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) stretched along the ancient “Silk Road” — a network of trading routes established by the Han Dynasty spanning the Asian continent — served as a bridge between China and Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey).

Actually, BRI is a global development project launched by Chinese president Xi Jinping in 2013 and looks to connect Asia, Africa and Europe, with billions of dollars' worth of infrastructural investment projects involving roads, railways, ports and energy transmission lines.

China, UAE agree to Facilitate Cooperation in Energy, Industrial Parks, Ports under Belt and Road Initiative

Beijing, July 20: China and United Arab Emirates (UAE) have agreed to facilitate cooperation in energy, industrial parks and ports under the Belt and Road Initiative.  This was stated during meeting of visiting United Arab Emirates (UAE) Minister of State Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on July 19, 2017. China is confident that Gulf countries have the wisdom to resolve divergence and is willing to play a constructive role to help ease tensions according to the will of regional parties.

MAKS-2017 Airshow to Promote Russian Aerospace Products on Global Market Says Putin

MOSCOW, July 18 :The 13th International Aviation and Space Salon (MAKS) in Russia will facilitate further cooperation in the aerospace industry and promote Russian products both at home and abroad, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday.

"An extensive exposition will be deployed. Leading Russian and foreign companies will present their achievements," Putin said in a speech at the opening ceremony of the MAKS-2017 airshow, which runs from Tuesday to Sunday in the Russian city of Zhukovsky on the southeastern outskirts of Moscow.

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at the opening ceremony of the MAKS-2017 (the International Aviation and Space Show) in Zhukovsky, outside Moscow, Russia, Russia, Tuesday, July 18, 2017.

Over 790 aviation and aerospace companies from 26 countries and regions are expected to showcase thousands of products and design projects at the airshow in search of cooperation opportunities.

"Conferences and seminars will take place on topical issues of the industry development. A number of negotiations and signing of major contracts are planned," Putin said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at the opening ceremony of the MAKS-2017 (the International Aviation and Space Show) in Zhukovsky, outside Moscow, Russia, Russia, Tuesday, July 18, 2017.

"We expect that all this will contribute to the strengthening of production cooperation, the growth of international cooperation, the promotion of Russian products in the domestic and foreign markets. We have something to offer," the president said.

More than 73,000 professionals have signed up for a visit at the airshow so far, and the total number of visitors is expected to reach hundreds of thousands, according to the organizing committee of the airshow.

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at the opening ceremony of the MAKS-2017 (the International Aviation and Space Show) in Zhukovsky, outside Moscow, Russia, Russia, Tuesday, July 18, 2017.

Founded in 1993, the MAKS is a biennial event aimed at displaying Russian aerospace-related high-tech products and promoting business cooperation with foreign partners in the aerospace sector.

The entire event usually lasts for six days, exclusively accessible to research and development institutions, business organizations and the press in the first three days, and then open to the public for the rest of the time.

China's COSCO Shipping Ports and Abu Dhabi Ports Launch New Terminal at Khalifa Port, UAE

Abu Dhabi, Dec. 16: China’s COSCO Shipping Ports (CSP) and Abu Dhabi Ports on Monday inaugurated the new CSP Abu Dhabi Terminal at Khalifa Port to help connect Abu Dhabi to the company’s global network of 36 ports and bolster its role as a hub along China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

The deep-water, semi-automated container terminal includes the region’s largest container freight station, covering a total area of 275,000 square-metres. The facility also offers facilities for full and partial bonded container shipments and a range of container packing services, warehousing for de-consolidated cargo and connectivity to other terminals in Khalifa Port.

The terminal is also CSP’s first greenfield subsidiary. So far, CSP has invested AED 1.1 billion  ($299.4 million) in capital expenditure on construction and machinery at the facility.

According to Abu Dhabi Ports, the partnership with CSP forms part of a larger effort to strengthen Abu Dhabi’s maritime sector and the emirate’s economic diversification.

Abu Dhabi Ports has earmarked AED 10 billion ($2.72 billion) in investment to increase capacity at Khalifa Port from the current 5 million TEU to 9.1 Million TEU, which includes boosting capacity at Terminal 1 to over 5 million TEU.

The CSP Abu Dhabi terminal, for its part, has a design capacity of 2.5 million TEU and will begin with a handling capacity of 1.5 million TEU.

“The decision by COSCO Shipping Ports to invest in Abu Dhabi is a testament to our strategic location, attractive business environment and supportive regulation,” said Sheikh Theyab bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of the Department of Transport. “We believe that it will open the door to more foreign direct investment.”

Ning Jizhe, Deputy Director of China’s National Development and Reform Commission, said that the CSP terminal is a “major milestone” for China’s Belt and Road Initiative.

“[It is} also a good start for China and UAE’s pragmatic cooperation in other areas,” he said. “The two countries strong determination for cooperation laid a solid foundation for development and deepening of mutual relations, and thus provided promising prospects for cooperation in the future….China and UAE will continue to cooperate in more flagship projects and jointly contribute to the Belt and Road Initiative.

China is currently the UAE’s largest non-oil trading partner, with bilateral trade between the two increasing 15 percent to $53 billion in 2017.

During the same period the UAE accounted for nearly 30 per cent of total Chinese exports to Arab countries and about 22 per cent of total Arab-China trade. Bilateral trade is expected to increase to $70 billion a year by 2020.

The new terminal is also expected to ease the way for companies seeking to establish, expand or enhance their trade by using local manufacturing, warehousing or logistics operations within Abu Dhabi. It will also act as a catalyst for investment by foreign companies to set up in the free zone of Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (Kizad).

Kizad, which comprises 410 square kilometres, has attracted more than 200 tenants and Dh65 billion in investment till date.

A total of 19 Chinese companies have signed lease agreements for land in Kizad with investment surpassing more than $1 billion, officials said earlier this year.

The new terminal is part of Abu Dhabi Ports’ five-year growth strategy to increase Khalifa Port, with its two container terminals, to a combined total capacity of 9.1 million TEUs.

Azerbaijani, Turkish and Turkmen Agree to Develop a 2017-2020 Cooperation Roadmap

BAKU, July 19 : Azerbaijani, Turkish and Turkmen foreign ministers have agreed to develop a Road Map for Future Cooperation for 2017-2020, Azerbaijan’s FM Elmar Mammadyarov said on July 19, at a briefing held after the meeting with his Turkish and Turkmen counterparts, Mevlut Cavusoglu and Rashid Meredov in Baku.

“We had interesting and fruitful negotiations. The three countries are carrying out numerous regional projects and we have discussed the progress in their implementation,” said the Azerbaijani FM.

He noted that the project for building the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway will be completed by the end of 2017, and subsequently great opportunities for cooperation will emerge.

Azerbaijan, Turkey and Turkmenistan also intend to use other ways for cargo transportation, via trunk lines and sea routes as well, Mammadyarov said, adding this issue was today discussed at the trilateral meeting.

“Next year, the work will be completed on expansion of the port in Turkmenbashi, which will increase cargo transportation between the ports of Alat and Turkmenbashi up to 25 million tons per year,” he said.

Azerbaijan’s capital, Baku, today hosted the 4th meeting of the foreign ministers of Azerbaijan, Turkey and Turkmenistan, Elmar Mammadyarov, Mevlut Cavusoglu and Rashid Meredov.

The agenda of the meeting of the three countries’ FMs included the development of cooperation in the political, economic, energy, transport and humanitarian spheres, and the implementation of regional projects.

Source: Trend

Trade between Russia and China Saw Boom in First 6 Months of 2017

Beijing, July 16: Trade between Moscow and Beijing has increased significantly in the first six months of the year, according to the Chinese customs administration.

Through June, trade between Russia and China was worth $39.78 billion. Russian exports increased 29.3 percent to $20.34 billion, while Chinese exports to Russia were up 22.2 percent to $19.44 billion.

In 2016, trade between Moscow and Beijing grew only 2.2 percent to $69.52 billion. The countries have set a goal to boost trade to $200 billion by 2020.

In July, the Russian Direct Investment Fund and the China Development Bank (CDB) agreed to establish a Russian-Chinese investment fund worth 68 billion yuan ($10 billion). It was created to make settlements in ruble and yuan easier.

Both Moscow and Beijing have repeatedly talked about the importance of payments in local currencies for bilateral trade.

The agreement was signed at a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, while he was in Russia on an official visit.

The countries are also jointly building the Power of Siberia gas pipeline, and a liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility on the Yamal Peninsula in the Russian Arctic.

Over the past year, Russia has overtaken Saudi Arabia as China's top oil supplier.

China is building a new transport corridor to Europe as part of the Belt and Road Initiative (also known as the New Silk Road), which goes through Kazakhstan and Russia to Europe.

Source: RT