Turkey's exports increase in February

Turkish exports in February totaled $8.2 billion, the Turkish Exporters' Assembly, or TİM, said Monday.

Sales abroad rose 20.3 percent compared to the same month in 2009, the assembly said.

TİM Chairman Mehmet Büyükekşi announced the February export figures in the Black Sea province of Ordu, saying Turkey's exports rose 16.3 percent to a total of $16.1 billion over the first two months of the year. "With these figures, we have finally attained a higher than 20 percent increase, which we had expected earlier."

Turkish exports decreased by 18 percent to $99.3 billion over the past 12 months, according to the TİM figures.

Assembly members’ exports, which made up 83.9 percent of Turkey's total exports in February, came to $6.9 billion, an increase of 20.5 percent.

The agriculture sector, which has a 13.6 percent share in total exports, earned $1.1 billion from exports, an increase of 13.6 percent. Constituting 2.5 percent of total exports, the mining industry saw a 68 percent hike in its exports up to $203 million.

Industrial products ranked first with a 66 percent share of total exports. The automotive sector accounted for the largest share of these products for February’s numbers with an 18.4 percent share.

Apparel products ranked second at 14 percent, while iron and steel products took third spot with 9.8 percent.

The biggest export increase recorded in February was in the mining sector, whose figures rose 68 percent. Walnut products and non-metal products were also big movers, increasing by 53.6 and 50 percent, respectively.

The products that saw a drop in exports include tobacco, with a 22.2 percent decline; iron and steel products at 19 percent; and dried fruits and fruit products at 3.8 percent.

The sub-sectors that saw exports worth $1 billion or more were the car and supplier industry as well as apparel, with $1.5 billion and $1.1 billion, respectively.

The 10 countries to which Turkey exported the most in February were Germany, Italy, France, the United Kingdom, Iraq, Russia, Spain, the United States, Egypt and Iran.

The associations that exported the most during February were the General Secretariat of Istanbul Mineral and Metals Exporters' Associations, or İMMİB, the Uludağ Exporters' Association, or UIB , the Istanbul Textile and Apparel Exporters' Union, or İTKİB, the Undersecretariat for Foreign Trade for the Central Anatolian Exporter Union, or OAİB, the Aegean Exporters Association, or EİB, the Mediterranean Exporters' Union, or AKİB, the Eastern Anatolia Exporters' Union, or DAİB, the Southeast Anatolia Exporters' Union, or GAİB, the Black Sea Exporters' Union, or KİB, the General Secretariat of Istanbul Exporters' Associations, or GSIEA, the Denizli Textile and Apparel Exporters' Association, or DETKİB, the Antalya Exporters' Union, or AİB, and the Eastern Black Sea Exporters' Association, or DKİB.

The İMMİB ranked first with $2.4 billion, followed by the UİB at $1.6 billion and the İTKİB in third place at $1.3 billion.