The European Union and Britain stepped up pressure on Russia on Friday over its war on Ukraine with new sanctions targeting its energy sector, fleet of aging “shadow” oil tankers and military intelligence services.

“The message is clear: Europe will not back down in its support for Ukraine. The EU will keep raising the pressure until Russia ends its war,” EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said after the bloc agreed its new measures, including a new oil price cap.

Kallas said it’s “one of its strongest sanctions packages against Russia to date” linked to the war, now in its fourth year. It comes as European countries start to buy U.S. weapons for Ukraine to help the country better defend itself.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy welcomed the new measures, describing them as a “timely and necessary” step amid intensified Russian attacks.

“All infrastructure of Russia’s war must be blocked,” Zelenskyy said, adding that Ukraine will synchronize its sanctions with the EU and introduce its own additional measures soon.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov brushed off the EU move, saying that “we consider such unilateral restrictions unlawful.”

“At the same time, we have acquired certain immunity from sanctions. We have adapted to living under sanctions,” Peskov said in a conference call with reporters. “We will need to analyze the new package in order to minimize negative consequences from it.”

The U.K., meanwhile, imposed sanctions on units of Russia’s military intelligence service, GRU. Also added to the list were 18 officers the U.K. said helped to plan a bomb attack on a theater in southern Ukraine in 2022 and to target the family of a former Russian spy who was later poisoned with a nerve agent.

Hundreds of civilians sheltering in the theater in Mariupol were killed in March 2022, shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine.

“GRU spies are running a campaign to destabilize Europe, undermine Ukraine’s sovereignty and threaten the safety of British citizens,” U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy said.

NATO also condemned Russia’s cyberattacks, saying in a statement that “we will respond to these at a time and in a manner of our choosing, in accordance with international law, and in coordination with our international partners including the EU.”

The European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, had proposed to lower the oil price cap from $60 to $45, which is lower than the market price, to target Russia’s vast energy revenues. The 27 member countries decided to set the price per barrel at just under $48.

The EU had hoped to get major international powers in the G-7 involved in the price cap to broaden the impact, but the Trump administration could not be brought on board.

Oil income is the linchpin of Russia’s economy, allowing President Vladimir Putin to pour money into the armed forces without worsening inflation for everyday people and avoiding a currency collapse.

A new import ban was also imposed in an attempt to close a loophole allowing Russia to indirectly export crude oil via a number of non-EU countries.

The EU also targeted the Nord Stream pipelines between Russia and Germany to prevent Putin from generating any revenue from them in the future, notably by discouraging would-be investors. Russian energy giant Rosneft’s refinery in India was hit as well.

The pipelines were built to carry Russian natural gas to Germany but are not in operation.

On top of that, the new EU sanctions targeted Russia’s banking sector, with the aim of limiting the Kremlin’s ability to raise funds or carry out financial transactions. Two Chinese banks were added to the list.

The EU has slapped several rounds of sanctions on Russia since Putin ordered his troops into Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.

More than 2,400 officials and “entities” – often government agencies, banks, companies or organizations – have been hit with asset freezes and travel bans.

But each round of sanctions is getting harder to agree, as measures targeting Russia bite the economies of the 27 member nations. Slovakia held up the latest package over concerns about proposals to stop Russian gas supplies, which it relies on.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he had spoken to Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico “almost daily” in recent days to convince him to change his mind. “But it took a very long time again – the processes are too sluggish,” he told reporters in Berlin.

The last raft of EU sanctions, imposed on May 20, targeted almost 200 ships in Russia’s sanction-busting shadow fleet of tankers. On Friday, 105 more ships were blocked from European ports, locks and from ship-to-ship transfers, bringing the total number of vessels now sanctioned to more than 400.

The Daily Sabah Newsletter

Keep up to date with what’s happening in Turkey,
it’s region and the world.

SIGN ME UP

You can unsubscribe at any time. By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Türkiye and Britain have “successfully” finished the first round of talks on updating their free trade agreement (FTA), the Turkish Trade Ministry said on Friday.

The negotiations in Ankara with the high-level participation of the relevant institutions of both countries have been “extremely productive,” with many critical topics discussed in order to deepen the scope of the FTA, the statement said.

“The strategic economic cooperation between Türkiye and the U.K. is gaining new and strong momentum,” the statement said.

The two countries already have an FTA, which was rolled over when Britain left the European Union, but a review by both sides has concluded there was room for improvement under a new deal.

Trade talks were paused during last year’s election that saw Labour Party return to government after 14 years in opposition.

The updated FTA will provide new mutual market openings in agricultural products, the ministry said, adding that comprehensive provisions will be included to provide a mutually beneficial cooperation environment between the two countries regarding trade in services.

“In this context, possible opportunities in the field of financial services, including Islamic finance, will be explored, and service sectors in which our country is competitive, such as health services and audiovisual services, will be considered,” it said.

It noted that joint steps that can be taken to facilitate investments will be discussed, mutual recognition of geographically marked products will be ensured, and awareness-raising steps will be taken for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

“Areas of cooperation on innovation, consumer protection and women’s economic empowerment will be concretized. The sustainable development dimension of trade in environment and labor issues will be reflected and customs procedures will be simplified in traditional and digital channels within the scope of trade facilitation,” it added.

The statement stressed both sides’ strong mutual will to complete the FTA update as soon as possible in a way that will contribute to the prosperity of both countries.

The annual trade volume between the two countries reached $22 billion in 2024, with the U.K. ranking as Türkiye’s seventh-largest trading partner, the ministry said. Türkiye runs a trade surplus of $8 billion.

“In this context, the U.K. market, with a population of 69 million, maintains its importance as a strategic economic partner that supports employment in Türkiye while offering a strong demand for our products,” the statement said.

The next round of negotiations is expected to take place by the end of 2025.

The Daily Sabah Newsletter

Keep up to date with what’s happening in Turkey,
it’s region and the world.

SIGN ME UP

You can unsubscribe at any time. By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

The Turkish central bank’s upcoming interest rate decision is expected to mark the start of a new rate-cutting cycle and is being closely watched as the main item on the market agenda, as disinflation continues and market turmoil has largely faded.

Next Thursday’s meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is expected to see the Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye (CBRT) kick off a renewed easing cycle with a 250 basis-point rate cut, according to a survey and a Wall Street bank.

All but one of the 17 economists in a Reuters poll forecast the central bank to cut the policy rate at the July 24 meeting. The median forecast was for a 250 basis-point cut to 43.50%, with predictions ranging from 42.50% to 44.50% among those expecting an easing step.

Thirteen respondents expected a cut of 250 basis points, while one predicted the bank to hold rates at 46%.

Most expect rate cuts to continue in the months ahead, with the policy rate falling to 36% by the end of 2025, according to the median of 17 forecasts.

The monetary easing is likely to continue through at least the third quarter of 2026, an earlier Reuters poll of economists showed.

If delivered, the move would mark the first cut since a surprise 350 basis-point hike in April, which reversed an earlier easing cycle. That tightening helped stabilize markets after the jailing of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoğlu sent Turkish assets and the lira sharply lower in March.

Imamoğlu was arrested pending trial over graft charges.

Morgan Stanley also expects a 250 basis-point cut this month, followed by three additional cuts of the same size to bring the policy rate to 36% by year-end.

“While we expect a rise in the monthly inflation trend in July due to administered price adjustments, we expect this to be temporary given weaker domestic demand (negative output gap) and our expectation for the bank to deliver prudent rate cuts to keep the monetary stance tight,” the bank said.

Aggressive monetary tightening since mid-2023, combined with favorable energy prices, has helped reduce Türkiye’s annual inflation rate by more than half over the past year.

The inflation lastly dipped to 35.05% in June. The better-than-expected print renewed expectations that the central bank would begin cutting rates again.

Monthly inflation was 1.37%, with price declines in key categories such as food and beverages reinforcing the central bank’s view that a disinflation trend is taking hold.

The Daily Sabah Newsletter

Keep up to date with what’s happening in Turkey,
it’s region and the world.

SIGN ME UP

You can unsubscribe at any time. By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

The European Union has eased rules for Turks to use its open-border Schengen area, the bloc’s ambassador to Ankara announced on Friday, calling for the urgent revival of negotiations on visa-free travel for Turks.

Turkish Trade Minister Ömer Bolat confirmed that the European Commission has issued a new document aimed at facilitating and accelerating Schengen visa procedures for Turkish citizens and has shared it with EU member states.

For years, Turkish citizens and businesses have complained about the EU’s visa system. The EU has argued the processes – managed by accredited visa agencies – have been slow due to the high number of applications and that it was discussing possible workarounds with Ankara.

The new guidelines allow for longer-term, multiple-entry visas to be issued to Turkish nationals who have previously obtained a Schengen visa and traveled regularly without overstaying.

Bolat recalled the difficulties Turkish citizens have faced in recent years, including long appointment wait times, the issuance of very short-term visas and high rejection rates.

These concerns have been consistently raised with EU officials at all levels, including the European Commission, the European Council and bilateral meetings with member states, he said in a statement on Friday.

Multiple-entry visa pathway

Ambassador Thomas Hans Ossowski said the new rules would help address Turks’ complaints over long bureaucratic processes, but warned it was not enough to permanently solve the problems.

“It will be much easier and much faster for Turkish citizens,” Ossowski told reporters in Ankara, referring to the European Commission’s new decision, in effect since July 15, simplifying the path to multiple-entry visas for Turks.

Turks who previously used visas correctly will be eligible for a six-month visa as early as their second application, followed by one-year, three-year and five-year multiple-entry visas.

Türkiye has been an EU membership candidate since 1999 but its accession process has been frozen for years over multiple disagreements, including the prolonged process of expansion of the scope of the customs union agreement, maritime issues with Greece and Greek Cyprus, and EU policies on Syrian refugees.

There have recently been signs of increased engagement and economic cooperation.

Renewed push for visa-free travel

Ossowski said the EU had for more than a decade offered Türkiye the prospect of visa-free travel and stressed the need to return to the liberalization process.

Negotiations for visa-free travel between the EU and Türkiye began in 2016 but yielded no results.

“Every other candidate country has visa-free travel except Türkiye,” he said. “It is urgent to re-engage in this process of visa-free travel in the Schengen space and the EU,” Ossowski added.

The Commission is ready to restart formal negotiations after the summer and work with Ankara on fulfilling the six remaining benchmarks required by the visa liberalisation roadmap, he said.

“We are ready, the Commission is ready to work closely with Turkish authorities,” he said.

Diplomatic engagement

Bolat said, Türkiye has pursued a positive agenda with the EU, initiating a high-level trade dialogue and holding key meetings in both Ankara and Brussels to begin removing barriers in bilateral relations.

“We have always reminded EU authorities and member states that visa liberalization is a right granted to Turkish citizens under international agreements,” he noted.

“In the meantime, while we await the removal of visa restrictions, we have stressed the need for practical solutions: shortening appointment times for business, tourism, transport and education-related travel, and improving the capacity of EU embassies and consulates in Türkiye.”

He noted that EU officials have acknowledged Türkiye as the second-largest recipient of Schengen visas globally – after China – with over 1 million visas issued annually and an average rejection rate of around 15%.

The latest round of detailed discussions took place on July 1 during the Türkiye-EU High-Level Trade Dialogue in Ankara.

According to Bolat, EU officials informed them during those talks that a new visa facilitation scheme was in the works.

“We are pleased to see that the European Commission has finalized and circulated this document to member states as of yesterday,” he said. “It envisions longer-term, multiple-entry visas for Turkish citizens who have demonstrated regular and reliable travel behavior, with no migration or security risk.”

“This is an important and positive development for our citizens in terms of tourism, business, trade, investment, education, academia, and civil society engagements.”

‘No excuse’

Bolat stressed that embassies and consulates of the 25 Schengen countries “no longer have any excuse” to delay the process.

“To accelerate this implementation, we urge urgent upgrades to consular infrastructure, including buildings, staffing, and IT systems,” he added. “The European Commission has responded positively to our calls, officially launching the process for issuing long-term, multiple-entry visas through this new directive to member states.”

“This is a major step that will enhance cooperation between Türkiye and EU countries in trade, education, tourism, culture and investment,” Bolat said, calling visas a “physical barrier to the movement of people” that is now being eased.

Bolat also stated that efforts will continue to ease and expedite procedures for first-time visa applicants.

“We believe this facilitation and acceleration process will soon apply to first-time applicants as well, provided that everyone complies with the updated regulations,” he said.

Customs union expansion

Looking ahead, Bolat reiterated that Türkiye expects progress in expanding and modernizing the EU-Türkiye Customs Union to include services and e-commerce.

“The Commission has already recommended the start of negotiations. The matter now rests with the European Council. Once approval is granted, we are ready to begin talks immediately – and so is the Commission,” he concluded.

First implemented in 1995, the Türkiye-EU Customs Union has helped boost economic ties. But business groups have long argued that the agreement is outdated and ill-suited for today’s trade environment.

A host of disagreements over recent years have stalled the negotiations. The deeper 1990s-era agreement would be expanded to services, farm goods and public procurement. The current deal only covers a limited range of industrial products.

Türkiye’s total trade volume with Europe – including both EU and non-EU countries – reached $327 billion in 2024, with $149 billion in exports and $178 billion in imports, according to the Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEIK).

House sales in Türkiye remained robust in June as over 107,000 units were sold nationwide, official data showed on Thursday, reflecting strong demand that comes despite a prolonged period of elevated borrowing costs.

A total of 107,723 homes were sold across the country last month, up 35.8% year-over-year, according to the data from the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat).

The country’s largest and most populous city, Istanbul, once again led the market with 17,656 units sold in June, data revealed.

The capital Ankara followed with 9,428 sales, while the Aegean city of Izmir recorded 5,987 sales. The provinces with least sales were Ardahan with 38, Bayburt with 62 and Hakkari with 81 units, TurkStat said.

New home sales climbed 32% year-on-year to 33,569 units in June, while second-hand sales jumped 37.6% to 74,154 units.

Mortgage-financed sales, meanwhile, surged 112.6% in June compared to a year earlier, totaling 14,484 homes and representing 13.4% of all house sales.

Sales to foreign buyers also rose, with 1,565 homes sold to non-Turkish citizens – an 8.7% increase from last year. Russians, Ukrainians and Iranians accounted for the highest number of foreign purchases.

The provinces with the highest number of house sales to foreigners were the Mediterranean resort of Antalya with 603, Istanbul with 521 and Mersin, also in the south of Türkiye, with 128 units sold last month.

While home sales to foreigners rose slightly in May and June, in the January-June period, cumulative sales to foreigners decreased by 10.6% compared to the same period of the previous year to 9,354 units, the data revealed.

The Turkish housing market has shown resilience and has seen a continued period of strong monthly sales despite tight monetary conditions. The Turkish central bank has kept its key policy rate at 46% after reversing a short-lived easing cycle, as it aims to curb inflation, which has shown to be particularly sticky in the services sector and rents.

Sales in first half of year up 26.9%

TurkStat data also revealed that total house sales, from January through the end of June, reached some 691,893 units, marking a 26.9% increase over the same period in 2024.

Of this, mortgaged sales totaled 103,090 units, which marked an increase of 100.5% compared to the same period last year.

Separate data released by the Turkish central bank on Thursday also showed that the residential property price index (RPPI) ticked up 2% on a monthly basis in June.

The RPPI increased annually by 32.8% in nominal terms and decreased by 1.7% in real terms, the data from the bank revealed.

The regions that saw the highest rise in annual terms were mostly the eastern and southeastern provinces of Erzurum, Erzincan, Bayburt, Ağrı, Ardahan, Kars, Iğdır, Bingöl, Elazığ, Malatya, Tunceli, Van, Bitlis, Hakkari, Muş, alongside the capital Ankara.

At the same time, southwestern and southern provinces such as Aydın, Denizli, Muğla, Antalya, Burdur and Isparta saw the lowest annual change, the Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye (CBRT) said.

The Daily Sabah Newsletter

Keep up to date with what’s happening in Turkey,
it’s region and the world.

SIGN ME UP

You can unsubscribe at any time. By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Immigrants in Germany, the United States, France and six other countries earn significantly less on average than native-born citizens, research published on Thursday showed.

Other countries include Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain and Sweden, according to an international study commissioned by the journal Nature and conducted with the participation of researchers from the Nuremberg Institute for Employment Research (IAB).

Several of the other countries are closing the wage gap in the second generation of immigrants more quickly than Germany.

In Germany, the income gap for the first generation is 19.6%. The main reason for the deficit is not unequal pay for the same work, but rather limited access to better-paid industries, occupations and companies.

Data from 13.5 million immigrants and native workers in nine countries was analyzed for the study.

“Integration is primarily about breaking down structural barriers to access well-paid jobs,” said Malte Reichelt, co-author of the study, from the IAB.

Language support, recognition of foreign qualifications, expansion of professional networks and better information transfer are important for breaking down structural barriers.

In Germany, there is still a wage gap among second-generation immigrants, averaging 7.7%. Descendants of immigrants from Africa and the Middle East, in particular, continue to be disadvantaged.

An international comparison reveals varying degrees of disparity.

The largest wage gaps among the first generation were found in Spain (29.3%) and Canada (27.5%), followed by Norway (20.3%), Germany (19.6%), France (18.9%) and the Netherlands (15.4%).

The differences were significantly smaller in the U.S. (10.6%), Denmark (9.2%) and Sweden (7%).

Income differences are also evident among the second generation, with the wage gap averaging 5.7%, meaning Germany is above average in this respect.

The wage gap is widest among second-generation immigrants in Norway, at 8.7%, and narrowest in Canada, at 1.9%.

The Daily Sabah Newsletter

Keep up to date with what’s happening in Turkey,
it’s region and the world.

SIGN ME UP

You can unsubscribe at any time. By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.