Economy
Adani Group to sell stake in Indian port to giant MSC for $1.4B
Indian conglomerate Adani Group announced Tuesday that shipping giant MSC will acquire a 49% stake in its deep-water transshipment port in southern India for $1.4 billion.
The purchase by Switzerland-based MSC, the world’s largest container shipping company, represents the “single largest foreign private investment in Indian port infrastructure,” Adani said in a statement.
The agreement comes as India seeks to develop a network of major seaports and reduce its dependence on regional transshipment hubs such as Singapore and Colombo by handling a greater share of cargo domestically.
The Adani Group said MSC would buy the stake in Adani Vizhinjam Port Private Limited, which operates the Vizhinjam International Seaport in the southern state of Kerala.
The transaction will be carried out through MSC’s investment arm, Terminal Investment Limited, and remains subject to regulatory approvals.
The group said the partnership was expected to increase cargo volumes at Vizhinjam and help the port capture a larger share of Bangladesh cargo that is currently routed through other Southeast Asian hubs.
“Vizhinjam port has emerged as a premier transshipment hub and ramped up at an unprecedented pace,” Adani Ports chief executive Ashwani Gupta said in the statement.
Vizhinjam is India’s first dedicated deep-water container transshipment port and is designed to handle some of the large container vessels that currently bypass Indian ports.
New Delhi has outlined plans to build and expand major port infrastructure over the coming decades as it seeks to boost trade competitiveness.
Türkiye’s central bank on Wednesday simplified its reserve requirement framework by abolishing the additional lira reserve requirement previously applied to foreign currency deposits/participation funds.
The Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye (CBRT) also said it was raising reserve ratios for foreign currency liabilities.
In a statement, the bank said the move sought to “strengthen macrofinancial stability and support the monetary transmission mechanism.”
Under the decision, the requirement introduced in 2023 obliging banks to hold additional Turkish lira-denominated reserve requirements against foreign currency deposits and participation funds has been terminated. The additional reserve ratio had most recently been set at 2.5%.
At the same time, the CBRT increased reserve requirement ratios for foreign currency deposits.
It said the reserve requirement ratios applied to foreign currency deposits/participation funds had been revised to 32% from 30% for demand deposits and deposits with maturities up to one month, and to 28% from 26% for those with longer maturities.
Foreign currency
deposits/participation funds
Previous ratio New ratio Demand deposits and deposits with
maturities up to 1 month
30% 32% With longer maturities 26% 28%
Inflation in Istanbul eased slightly on both an annual and a monthly basis in June, data from a major chamber showed on Wednesday, ahead of the release of nationwide data later this week.
Consumer prices in Türkiye’s largest city advanced 35.94% year-over-year last month, the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce (ITO) said, thus slowing down from 36.77% registered in May.
Month-over-month prices rose 1.14%, ITO said. This marked a lower increase than 1.53% seen in May.
Driving the monthly surge in prices was the communication group, with a surge of 4.28%, and the alcohol and tobacco group with 4.20%, the survey showed. The prices, however, regressed in transportation (-0.95%) and the clothing and footwear group (-2.21%).
On a yearly basis, education and housing continued to weigh on the overall inflation picture, being the two groups with the highest surge at 52.51% and 46.29%, respectively.
The ITO data comes prior to the official nationwide data due to be released by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) on Friday.
Inflation in the country picked up recently amid Iran-related war-related pressures, after a long downward streak that saw it drop to the 30s from over 70%.
Economists polled recently by Anadolu Agency (AA) expect Türkiye’s inflation rate to decline slightly in June.
The consumer price index (CPI) is forecast to rise 1.04% month-on-month in June, according to the average estimate of 17 economists who took part in the Finance Inflation Expectations Survey. Their monthly inflation forecasts ranged between 0.81% and 1.77%.
Consumer prices rose 1.71% month-over-month in May.
At the same time, annual inflation is expected to fall to 32.17% in June from 32.61% in May, the poll showed.
Türkiye’s manufacturing activity contracted again in June after a slight rebound in May, as the war in the Middle East disrupted demand and supply, a business survey showed on Wednesday.
The Istanbul Chamber of Industry’s (ISO) Türkiye Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), compiled by S&P Global, fell to 47.1 in June from 49.8 in May. The 50-mark separates growth from contraction.
Output returned to decline after rising slightly in May, with firms citing market uncertainty linked to the conflict in the Middle East, softer new orders and higher prices.
Demand weakened further, with total new orders posting a solid decline, and new export business also falling again after expanding in May.
The June survey reversed some of May’s improvement and extended the sector’s downturn to 27 consecutive months. Firms also reduced stocks of purchases and finished goods amid muted demand conditions, the panel showed.
“The Turkish manufacturing sector took a step back in June, posting a renewed softening of production amid muted new orders. Anecdotal evidence from the survey indicated that the war in the Middle East continued to be the principal cause of the challenges facing firms,” said Andrew Harker, economics director at S&P Global Market Intelligence.
U.S. retailers are speeding up their orders from China, moving up orders by four to six weeks to secure inventories for Black Friday and Christmas holiday sales before expected tariff hikes later this year, shipping executives said.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s visit to China last month has preserved the detente between the world’s two largest powers, but uncertainty remains high.
A universal 10% U.S. tariff imposed by Washington in February, after the Supreme Court declared some earlier tariffs illegal, expires on July 24, but it is widely expected to be replaced with higher levies.
The U.S. Trade Representative has proposed a 12.5% tariff on imports from China and elsewhere following an investigation into forced labor, which Beijing denies, with a final decision expected in the coming months.
“There is an expectation that tariffs could be raised again, or restored to previous levels, so everyone is rushing to get goods in before that happens,” said Tony Meng, a China-based senior sales manager at shipping firm XPD Global.
U.S. exports expected strong in June
Usually, such orders peak in July through September, but shipping firms said volumes in May and June were higher than expected, contributing to a spike in shipping prices.
The frontloading means that the 35% growth in U.S. imports from China in May, which overshadowed April’s 11% growth and March’s contraction, could be sustained in June but may fade later in the summer.
Exports have been a key growth driver this year for China, compensating for structural weakness in domestic demand and building on a strong 2025 when the world’s second-largest economy posted a record $1.2 trillion trade surplus.
China’s top U.S. export items by value in May included smartphones, lithium-ion batteries, solid-state drives, toys, kitchenware and festival products. June data will be released on July 14.
Shipping group Maersk said in a statement to Reuters that container space has been tightening on the China-U.S. route since mid-May, due to “stronger customer demand and earlier seasonal bookings.”
A China-based shipping executive, who requested anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media, said back-to-school items such as stationery and apparel were part of the May-June frontloading, while early Christmas stockpiling also played a role.
He added May’s rise was also due to soccer World Cup-related orders, including jerseys, flags, souvenirs and large-screen TVs. The U.S. co-hosts the tournament with Canada and Mexico.
Shipping costs rise
Maritime consultancy Drewry’s World Container Index showed spot shipping rates from Shanghai to New York on June 25 were $7,149 per 40-foot container, 6% higher than a week before and 25% up on the year.
On the Shanghai to Los Angeles route, the cost was $5,750, 12% up on the week and 54% higher on the year.
“Importers continue frontloading shipments ahead of potential tariff changes and higher bunker-related costs,” a Drewry report said.
Outdoor furniture maker Jin Chaofeng said it would be hard to pass the entire cost of shipping fees on to customers, pointing to thin pricing power and profit margins for Chinese manufacturers in less technologically advanced sectors.
Kyle Henderson, CEO and co-founder of container-tracking software provider Vizion, warned, however, that tariffs still weigh on overall U.S. demand , which remains below its three-year average and should only be described as “normal-to-soft.”
The higher shipping costs reflect capacity management by transport firms more than surging U.S. demand, Henderson said, citing some cancelled sailings in recent weeks.
Henderson expects volumes to drop after July and into the third quarter due to a “combination of inventory already landed and a tariff environment that structurally raises the cost of China-origin goods.”
Türkiye’s foreign trade deficit narrowed 15.6% year-over-year in May, as imports fell more sharply than exports, official data showed on Tuesday.
Exports totaled $22.46 billion (TL 1.05 trillion), down 9.5% from the same month last year, while imports dropped 10.8% to $28.07 billion, according to provisional figures from the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) and the Trade Ministry.
The foreign trade gap fell to $5.61 billion in May from a year earlier.
The export-import coverage ratio rose to 80% in May, compared with 78.9% in the same month of 2025.
Excluding energy products and non-monetary gold, exports fell 11.5% to $20.5 billion, while imports dropped 16.2% to $21.03 billion. The trade deficit excluding these items stood at $525 million, while the coverage ratio was 97.5%.
Tuesday’s figures showed energy accounted for nearly one-quarter of Türkiye’s total imports in May, rising 43.4% year-over-year to $6.11 billion.
Crude oil imports increased 1.7% year-over-year to 2.67 million tons, up from 2.62 million tons in the same month last year.
This January through May, overall exports edged up 0.2% year-over-year to $111.12 billion, while imports rose 1.1% to $153.83 billion.
The foreign trade deficit rose 3.6% in the first five months of the year to $42.72 billion. The export-import coverage ratio fell to 72.2%, from 72.9% in the same period last year.
Germany was Türkiye’s top export destination in May, with shipments totaling $1.71 billion, followed by the U.S. with $1.52 billion, the U.K. with $1.38 billion, Italy with $1.14 billion and Spain with $922 million.
Russia was the leading source of imports, with $3.76 billion, followed by China with $3.43 billion, Germany with $2.04 billion, the U.S. with $1.21 billion and Italy with $1.06 billion.
Manufacturing products accounted for 94.5% of total exports in May, while intermediate goods made up 72.7% of total imports.
The share of high-technology products in manufacturing exports was 3.1% in May, while high-tech products accounted for 11.8% of manufacturing imports.
The European Union’s proposed Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA) – aiming to boost production in strategic sectors – will be decisive in the future of production and supply chain ties between Türkiye and the bloc, business leaders argued.
The flagship framework lies upon a “Made in EU” specification, requiring specific shares of member states involved in procurement, state aid, and various incentive programs.
The regulation aims to support European production, especially in clean technologies, the automotive sector, batteries, steel, chemicals and critical raw materials, to reduce its dependence on China and boost its production capacity.
The regulation could impact the bloc’s supply chain ties with Türkiye, depending on the extent to which products made in the country will be recognized within the Union origin requirements criteria or “EU content.”
Türkiye is highly integrated into Europe’s production and supply chains across many sectors due to the customs union, playing an active role in sectors ranging from automotive and machinery to steel and chemicals, with Turkish industrial products holding a massive share in the EU market.
Origin question
The draft includes an approach to evaluate production originating from Türkiye as European under certain conditions, but business leaders say this amounts more to preserving the current status quo than creating a new opportunity for Turkish firms.
The draft could potentially change amid negotiations between member states and the European Parliament (EP).
The definition of European content is limited to production carried out in member states, which could harm Turkish producers by reducing their access to certain incentives and public procurement, resulting in Turkish firms benefiting less from the bloc’s industrial incentives and creating a competitive disadvantage against European rivals.
Experts said excluding Türkiye from the Made in EU specification would increase costs for Turkish manufacturers and numerous European firms that rely on Turkish suppliers.
Auto sector
The auto sector is expected to be one of the most affected by the regulation, as Türkiye is one of Europe’s major vehicle production hubs, playing a key role in the supply chains of many global automakers.
Türkiye could secure a stronger position in Europe’s green transition and clean industry investments if kept within the framework.
Mehmet Ali Yalçındağ, chair of the Türkiye-Europe Business Council at the Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEIK), stated that Türkiye has been integral in Europe’s supply and value chains for nearly three decades with the customs union, noting that evaluation products made in the country under the Made in EU approach are significant.
He said the auto industry would be the most affected as it is not limited to vehicle production but involves multi-layered value chains like battery technologies, semiconductors, critical raw materials, software, artificial intelligence production systems and energy efficiency.
He noted that Türkiye is one of Europe’s key partners in green and digital transformation due to its strong auto supply industry, advanced supplier network, engineering capabilities, electric vehicle (EV) ecosystem and investments in low-carbon production.
“It is a strategic necessity to ensure products made in Türkiye are integrated into Europe’s industrial ecosystem without being subjected to quotas, obstacles or additional barriers, not only for the Turkish private sector but also for the EU’s industrial transformation and global competitiveness,” he said.
“Excluding Türkiye would affect Turkish firms and EU firms investing in Türkiye alike, as well as European manufacturers sourcing from Türkiye, affecting the bloc’s competitive production capacity; restricting Turkish production in strategic sectors would drive up costs, reduce the resilience of supply chains and weaken the EU industry against global competitors,” he added.
Yalçındağ urged the bloc to focus on updating the customs union and implementing common industrial policies to further existing integration instead of creating new barriers.
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