Growing Gulf-Turkey investment ties evolving unevenly following Erdogan’s $50B breakthrough

Al-Monitor Readers

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst, Al-Monitor

July 30, 2024

Turkey's central bank announced the return of a $5 billion deposit to Saudi Arabia on July 24, a little over a year after Riyadh provided the funds to help Ankara navigate its crippling economic crisis. Alongside signaling Turkey's economic turnaround is progressing, the move underlines the importance of ongoing cooperation with Gulf powers, which Ankara hopes will lead to major dealmaking. Case in point: July 2024 marks the one-year anniversary of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan taking a high-profile tour of Gulf capitals following his 2023 reelection. That visit, which generated investment pledges worth $50 billion from the UAE alone, was seen as a turning point in efforts to repair complex relations with former Gulf rivals, cementing a major reset among regional heavyweights that could unlock impactful investments. Yet, the 12 months since then haven’t fully delivered on that promise despite ongoing interest. Crucially, new mega deals haven’t materialized (at least compared to the UAE’s recent $35 billion investment into Egypt).