Turkish Exports Jump by 20,7 percent in Q1

Exports in March, largely driven by auto sales, jumped 22.8 percent to reach TL 11.7 billion ($7.3 billion), marking the highest export figures for the month of March in the history of the Republic of Turkey.

Although it is still unable to reach pre-crisis levels in exports to such traditional markets as the European Union and despite the ongoing popular unrest in the Middle East and North Africa region (MENA) — a market which has noticeably compensated for the loss in Turkish exports to the union — Turkey managed to increase its exports by 20.7 percent in the first quarter of this year over the same period of 2010, a recent report has found.

The Turkish Exporters Assembly (TİM) on Friday announced the export results for the first three months of 2011 at a press conference in the northwestern province of Bursa. According to TİM figures, the country’s exports reached $31.39 billion in the January-March period this year. The data suggest that Turkey’s exports jumped by 22.8 percent to reach TL 11.7 billion ($7.3 billion) in March over the same month a year before.

In addition to being the highest figures since March 2009, these are the highest export figures that the month of March has seen in the history of the Republic of Turkey.

Exports between March 2010 and March 2011 also surged by 15.1 percent and reached TL 119.36 billion in the one-year period.

Among Turkey’s leading exporter sectors, the automotive industry registered the highest number of exports in March with $1.95 billion; no surprise that TİM chose to announce export figures this time in Bursa, the country’s auto manufacturing hub. The ready-to-wear and textile industry followed with $1.43 billion and steel exports came in third with $1.39 billion.

Speaking at yesterday’s press conference, TİM President Mehmet Büyükekşi said Turkey’s exports to Middle East, which have been negatively affected by the recent upheaval in the region, increased by 33 percent to $5.7 billion in the first quarter over the same period last year. “Exports to the United Arab Emirates jumped by 72 percent in the first quarter of 2011 compared to the same months in 2010. Iran recorded the second highest increase in imports from Turkey with 48 percent, while Iraq and Saudi Arabia followed with 40 percent and 16 percent increases respectively in the given period.” He gave figures on countries that so far saw relatively little or no protests since the first of the popular reactions broke out a couple of months ago in Tunisia. Turkey’s exports to Egypt, Tunisia and Libya suffered losses in the first quarter.

The assembly’s chairman noted that Turkey’s exports to the EU have started to pick up, though they are still below pre-crisis 2008 levels. Exports to Germany, which has traditionally been the number one export market for Turkish products in Europe, jumped by 28 percent in the first three months of this year over the January-March period of last year. Italy followed Germany with a 24 percent increase in imports from Turkey and Britain imported 22 percent more than it did from Turkey in the same period last year.

Meanwhile, Büyükekşi called on the central bank to take measures against the risk of an overvalued Turkish lira for exporters. He criticized the bank’s decision to keep its one-week repo rate unchanged last week. Exporters expected an interest rate decrease which would make the lira lose value against US dollar.

02 April 2011
SOURCE: TODAYS ZAMAN