Syrians topped the list of foreign start-ups in Turkey in January 2016, with the number of Syrian company-partnered firms established in January totaling 227, the Hurriyet Daily News reports, citing data from the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB).

Data shows that 6,894 companies started operating in Turkey in January, 466 of which are foreign-partnered.

Some 227 of these, almost half, were founded directly by Syrians or with their partnership. Germans followed their Syrian counterparts, investing in 36 newly-established firms in Turkey, while Iraqis ranked third with 31 start-up investments, according to TOBB data released on Feb. 19.

More than a quarter of the foreign-partnered start-ups are operating in the wholesale and retail trade business and motor vehicle maintenance, while the construction and manufacturing sectors come next with 72 and 49 companies, respectively.

Overall, the total number of companies established in Turkey in January marked an 11.7 percent rise from the same month last year.

The TOBB figures also revealed that 1,915 companies were shut-down in Turkey, 21.5 percent lower than the same month last year.

The northern province of Bartın stood out as the only province that saw the establishment of no new companies in January.