The Harriyet Daily News has reported that the deal between Whirlpool and Vestel’s joint venture to produce appliances is off due to the global crisis. It would appear that many companies are becoming a lot more cautious given the current financial climate.
The website goes onto report that, in the midst of the global financial crisis, many Turkish companies have lost their appetite for foreign partnerships. The million-dollar sales, which were in abundance during the times of copious liquidity, have come to a halt.
The despondency and uncertainty created by the global crisis interrupted Turkish firms’ existing or planned company mergers or collaborations with foreign groups. The uncertainty hovering over the market values of the companies that have been put up for sale, and the slowdown in bank loans caused both the purchasers and sellers to delays their plans. Many company mergers as well as agreements have been canceled or postponed.
Vestel and Whirlpool Europe have been in talks related to founding an equal capital joint venture since last year. No result has been obtained from these talks thus far.
The current feeling seems to be that little, if anything, will come of these talks as manufacturers brace for a long hard winter of reduced sales which may well continue through next year.
