Kocaeli is a small province in terms of surface area, but a significant one in terms of added value.

In Kocaeli’s economic activities, the share of industry in the provincial GDP is 41.1%. (2019)

According to statistical data over the last 10 years, the province contributes 13% to Turkey’s manufacturing industry.

When looking at Kocaeli’s sectors:

*44% of Turkey’s vehicle production is carried out in Kocaeli. (2024)

*Kocaeli accounts for 27% of the chemical industry in Turkey.

*It meets 19% of Turkey’s metal industry needs.

Kocaeli is a province preferred by foreign-capital and large-scale enterprises.

Out of approximately 3,800 companies registered with our Chamber, 334 are foreign-capital companies. Among these are firms from Germany, the Netherlands, the USA, France, South Korea, and Italy. World-renowned companies such as Ford, Hyundai, Anadolu-Isuzu, Siemens, Türk Pirelli, Good Year, Brisa, Bridgestone, and Bosch manufacture in Kocaeli and expand globally from here.

80 of Turkey’s top 500 largest companies operate in Kocaeli. 13 of these are members of our Assembly, making us the chamber with the most Assembly members among the top 500. In addition, 137 of the top 1,000 companies continue their operations in Kocaeli. The fact that 13% of Turkey’s large enterprises are Kocaeli-based aligns with our province’s performance in manufacturing and taxation.

19.7% of Turkey’s foreign trade is conducted from Kocaeli.

According to data from Kocaeli Customs, in 2024 our province achieved:

*41.39 billion USD in exports,
*Our province’s share in Turkey’s exports → 15.80%
*Kocaeli’s per capita export → 19,431 USD, while Turkey’s national per capita export is → 3,057 USD
*77.96 billion USD in imports (Kocaeli’s share in Turkey’s imports: 22.65%)

With a total foreign trade volume of 119.36 billion USD in 2024, Kocaeli contributed 19.7% to Turkey’s foreign trade.

If Kocaeli were considered a country, it would rank 39th in foreign trade globally according to OECD data.
(Above EU members like Lithuania, Luxembourg, and Latvia)

According to the “Export Statistics by Province of Activity” published by the Ministry of Trade—based on the location of company headquarters—our province ranked second after Istanbul in 2024.

Kocaeli → 32.004 billion USD (Istanbul → 56.541 billion USD)
Our share of Turkey’s exports is 12.21%.

According to the 2023 Provincial Gross Domestic Product results announced by TÜİK, our province ranked fourth after Istanbul, Ankara, and Izmir with a GDP of 1.079 trillion TL. Our province’s share in the total GDP was 4.07%. In per capita GDP, Kocaeli ranked first with 516,460 TL.

With its Organized Industrial Zones, Free Zones, and Technoparks, Kocaeli’s industry has developed in a disciplined manner.

Geographically situated along all known trade routes across Eurasia, Kocaeli enjoys a significant logistical advantage and continues to be an investment hub. The province hosts 14 organized industrial zones, 5 technoparks, and 2 free zones. Most of these OSBs are specialized: TOSB Automotive Supplier Industry Specialized OSB, Chemical Industrialists OSB, Machinery OSB, and Plastics OSB.

The Informatics Valley (Bilişim Vadisi), which is expected to become Turkey’s information technology center and is the province’s fifth and largest technopark, is located in Muallimköy.

General Information Regarding Kocaeli’s Industrial Development:

Kocaeli is both an industrial and port city.

In İzmit Bay, a natural harbor, there are 37 ports and piers. Hence, our province is both an industrial and a port city. Since 2017, Kocaeli has ranked first in Turkey in terms of cargo handled at its ports. In 2024, 83.8 million tons of cargo were handled through Kocaeli’s ports—15.8% of the national total. Kocaeli Port ranks as the 7th largest port in Europe.

Kocaeli is a major hub attracting high-tech investments.

Industrial enterprises can easily access the knowledge they need through institutions such as Kocaeli University, Gebze Technical University, Kocaeli University of Health and Technology, Turkey’s largest research center TÜBİTAK MAM, TSE, Kocaeli University Technopark, Gebze Technical University Technopark, Gebze OSB Technopark, and TÜBİTAK MARTEK.

Moreover, Kocaeli possesses the infrastructure needed to provide the qualified human resources demanded by the industry.

Out of a total of 1,330 companies with R&D Centers, 138 are located in our province. We also have 16 Design Centers.

Kocaeli ranks third in tax revenue collected after Istanbul and Ankara, accounting for 10.31% of Turkey’s total. (2024)

In 2024, our province paid 753.033 billion TL in taxes. This figure exceeds the combined tax revenues of 69 other provinces in Turkey (718.816 billion TL). Furthermore, Kocaeli maintained its top position in tax collection efficiency with a collection-to-accrual ratio of 95%. Kocaeli’s per capita tax contribution in 2024 was 353,536 TL. Considering the national average is 85,272 TL, Kocaeli far exceeds the average and remains the province that contributes the most tax revenue to the government.

Despite contributing 353,536 TL in per capita tax revenue to the national budget in 2024, only 40,093 TL was spent per capita in Kocaeli. This figure is well below the national per capita public spending average of 125,804 TL. If our province received expenditures in line with the national average, many of our infrastructure shortcomings could be addressed.

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