Trade between Qatar and Turkey is estimated to have topped the $2bn mark in 2018, a 54 percent jump compared with the previous year, a Turkish official said.
Speaking at a Turkish trade expo that kicked off in Doha on Wednesday, Deputy Finance Minister Osman Dincbas said Qatar was one of the fastest growing areas of trade for Turkey in 2018, and the $2bn figure was expected to grow.
Since the launch of the Saudi-led boycott of Qatar in June 2017, Ankara has emerged as one of Doha’s top trading partners, sending additional troops, food, and other products to shore up the Gulf state’s needs.
The blockading quartet – including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain – accused Doha of supporting terrorism and siding with Iran, accusations Qatar has categorically denied.
Qatar last year pledged a $15bn package of economic projects, investments and deposits to Turkey that included an up to $3bn currency swap to firm up the country’s battered currency, the lira.
