Turkish textile industry is passing a crucial year with significant decline in exports throughout 2019. From the beginning of the first quarter of the year, raw materials being exported from Turkey dropped by 6.6% while it stood 5.6% for last 10 months. Though the overall exports from Turkey increased by 4.7%, export share of textile industry decreased unexpectedly.
According to ITHIB, 28 European countries were the largest importers of Turkish textiles and raw materials even when exports declined by approximately 12%. During the first two months, exports decreased by 10.7% while the total export accounted for 840 million dollars. Similarly, the export value has also decreased dramatically to 403 million dollars particularly in the EU zone.
ITHIB has also confirmed that African nations are in the second highest export zone for Turkish textile and raw materials. From January to February, textile exports to the African nations have also dropped 8.2% which accounts for 78 million dollars.
Middle east is one of the largest importers of Turkish textile and raw materials. Although, Turkey saw largest export decrease in this region which is 14% compared to the previous year. Eventually, Italy, Germany, USA, Bulgaria and The United Kingdom were the top 5 apparel importers of Turkish textile and raw materials.
Export volume increased by 5.5% on average compared to 2018 and thus value of raw materials and textile exports dropped dramatically; 36% lower than the previous year.
On the contrary, exports to US market from Turkish textile manufacturers have increased substantially and can be seen as a sign of hope. Despite a 2.1% decline in the first 9 months, exports to this market has increased 12.7 percent in the last quarter of the year.
Turkey is known for its premium quality of home textile products. Along with the significant export drop of all kinds of textile and materials, exports of home textile goods have also decreased by 2.9%. On a similar note, woven fabric exports have been affected significantly during this period with a 7.9 percent decrease.
Turkey is also a favorite sourcing destination for technical textiles. Unlike all other product categories, technical textiles have seen good export growth; 8.8% from January to October. If you're looking to source textiles from Turkey, then this list of verified Turkish textile manufacturers should help.
