Turkish Ports Boss Bets on Shorter Voyages to Beat Tariff Tumult

Turkish billionaire Robert Yuksel Yildirim is expanding his ports business in a bet that merchant shippers will undertake shorter voyages amid trade tensions between the US and China.

His CoreX Holding BV plans to snap up more ports in Latin America and Africa following the recent acquisition of a majority stake in Poliport near Istanbul, Yildirim said in an interview. He’s signed a provisional deal to buy a general cargo terminal in Colombia with a view to adding container capacity, he said.

Robert Yuksel Yildirim

Photographer: Horacio Villalobos/Getty Images

“The business will change from globalization to regional, so a lot of short-sea shipping will be increased” ...