TİM and THY Sign Cooperation Agreement

Collaboration between TİM and THY Turkey's Exporters Assembly (TİM) has expanded the scope of its discounted cargo transportation cooperation agreement with Turkish Airlines (THY) to reduce exporters' logistics costs. Under this framework, the number of destinations in the air cargo discount campaign was increased to 46, additional ton capacity was provided, discount rates were raised, and product categories were expanded. The Turkey's Exporters Assembly (TİM), the umbrella organization of 61 exporter unions, 27 sectors and 100,000 exporters, continues its efforts at full pace to increase exports by reducing air cargo transportation costs for exporters. Under this scope, TİM and THY signed a cooperation agreement last year that provided major advantages for Turkish exporters in global trade. Turkish Cargo was applying discounts ranging from 10 percent to 30 percent for additional capacity and 28 destinations heavily used by exporters. Thanks to the cooperation that made a significant contribution to Turkey's export mobilization, high-value-added products worth close to USD 1.2 billion were exported in 4 months, and the scope of the agreement was further expanded. With the new protocol signed between TİM and THY, Turkish export products in general cargo, eggs, fresh fruits and vegetables, and fish will be transported by air cargo to 46 destinations in 35 countries with discounts in the range of 10 to 35 percent. With the campaign, an additional capacity of 6,050 tons was allocated, and product categories were also expanded. The campaign, in which product ranges are provided not only per ton but also below-ton volumes with product contents, will continue until 31 December 2021. The "Air Cargo Cooperation Signature Ceremony" held at the Trade Ministry in Ankara regarding the new protocol was attended by Commerce Minister Mehmet Muş, Transport and Infrastructure Minister Adil Karaismailoğlu, TİM Chairman İsmail Gülle and Turkish Airlines Chairman of the Board and Executive Committee İlker Aycı. Turkey's Exporters Assembly Chairman İsmail Gülle emphasized that THY is a source of pride for the country. Noting that THY was Europe's most frequent network carrier with 1,333 daily flights between 16-22 August, Gülle stated: "While the collapse of global giants in the sector was being discussed during the pandemic, THY continued its operations by opening new routes despite all negative conditions. When borders were closed and road transport became nearly impossible, Turkish Cargo, with its solid infrastructure in air logistics, delivered Turkish products to countless destinations safely and quickly, standing by the export family. So much so that in May 2020, when the pandemic's impact was most severely felt, the share of air freight exports exceeded 10 percent. Exports are teamwork. Every order an exporter receives is a serious process requiring organization in terms of financing, production, marketing and logistics. On this occasion, I commend our flag-carrier aviation brand for its contributions to exports, through the Board Chairman İlker's offices. Hopefully, with this new protocol, we will take the share of air freight exports to much higher levels" he said.

Air Cargo Exports Reached USD 6.8 Billion

Gülle, noting that the cargo discount cooperation between TİM and THY conducted in December 2020 made significant contributions to exports, continued: "Through the cooperation, Turkish Cargo began applying 10 to 30 percent discounts on air freight cargo transportation of Turkish export products to 28 destinations. We determined the destinations by analyzing which points in logistics are heavily used and analyzing the export volumes to these points so that our exporters would achieve maximum efficiency. The figures clearly show the positive results of our TİM-THY Air Cargo Protocol. In the first 8 months of the year, our air cargo exports increased 28 percent year-on-year from USD 5.3 billion to USD 6.8 billion. These figures further encouraged us to expand our cooperation even more. Today, we are expanding our cooperation with a new protocol for our exporters. Recording that exports to the countries covered under the new protocol reached USD 86 billion 376 million in the first 8 months of 2021 with a 38 percent increase compared to the same period last year, İsmail Gülle stated: "With this signed protocol, our exporters will be able to deliver Turkish export products that can be transported under General Cargo (GEN), Eggs (HEG), Fresh Fruits and Vegetables (PEP) and Fish (PES) categories to customers at 46 destinations in 35 countries with discount rates in the range of 10 to 35 percent. The fact that all of the top 5 countries we export the most to are among these 35 countries is also of particular importance" he said. TİM Chairman Gülle said: "In order to make these gains permanent and sustainable, we are carefully attending to every level of exports. Within this scope, we received numerous requests from our exporters regarding air freight transportation during our consultations. As a result of consultations I had with İlker Aycı to respond quickly to these requests, the TİM THY Air Cargo Cooperation Protocol was put at the service of our exporters for a five-month period on 4 December. In the protocol signed today, the scope of export products was expanded to include eggs, fresh fruits and vegetables, and fish. The number of destinations increased from 28 to 46. Discount rates that exporters can benefit from on list prices were updated to between 10-35 percent. I believe we will achieve many successes in exports together with THY. I thank THY for this important cooperation. Turkey will rise with exports. Exports will rise on THY's wings" he said. Turkish Airlines Chairman of the Board and Executive Committee İlker Aycı: "Our flag-carrier cargo brand, with its extensive service network, continues to be a lifeline in accessing strategically important markets for our exporters. It is a source of pride for the Turkish Airlines family to reinforce our contribution to our exports, which are the locomotive of our economy with one of the world's highest growth rates. While the cargo sector contracted globally during the pandemic, Turkish Cargo continued to grow, proving its success even during this difficult period. During this challenging time, it also built export bridges to all corners of the world for our exporters. With our SmartIst cargo facility to be opened soon, this growth momentum will accelerate and a new era will begin in air freight transportation. We believe that Turkish Cargo and TİM cooperation will continue to be a driving force for both our country and our companies" he said.

46 Destinations to Receive Discounted Transportation

With the TİM-THY cooperation, Turkish Cargo will apply discounts on air freight cargo transportation of Turkish export products on the following routes: Algiers, Amman, Amsterdam, Stockholm Bahrain, Belgrade, Berlin, Beirut, Baghdad, Bangkok, Bangalore, Mumbai, Brussels Basel, Cairo, Guangzhou, Paris, Dhaka, Delhi, Düsseldorf, Dubai, Hamburg, Hanoi Hong Kong, Houston, Seoul, Islamabad, Kabul, Kyiv, Karachi, Kuala Lumpur Kuwait, Lahore, London, Linz, Chennai, Miami, Munich, Milan, Oslo, Ho Chi Minh City Tel Aviv, Tunis, Vilnius, Warsaw and Zurich.