According to the data of the Turkish Exporters Assembly (TIM), chemistry, which is the second largest exporting sector in June, realized an export of $2.37 billion.
According to the statement of the Istanbul Chemicals and Products Exporters’ Association, Turkiye’s exports in June decreased by 10.5% compared to the same period last year, amounting to $20.9 billion. In June exports, the chemical industry ranked second after the automotive industry with an export of $2.37 billion.
In June, exports of plastics and products in chemical substances and products product groups ranked first in chemical exports with $730 million 7 thousand. Mineral fuels and products took the second place with exports of $513 million 860 thousand, while inorganic chemicals exports took the third place with $248 million 301 thousand.
Other sectors in the top 10 following “inorganic chemicals” were “essential oils, cosmetics and soap”, “rubber, rubber goods”, “pharmaceutical products”, “paint, varnish, ink and their preparations”, “miscellaneous chemicals”, “organic chemicals” and “washing preparations”.
USA was the country with the most exports in June
The USA was the country to which the chemical industry exported the most in June. Other countries in the top 10 in June were Spain, Russia, Germany, Netherlands, Italy, Iraq, Romania, Greece and Belgium. Among the top 10 countries in June, the highest increase was in Greece with 100.68%.
Chemical exports to the USA in June amounted to $169 million 396 thousand. The said figure increased by 18.50% compared to the same period last year. The top five product groups exported to the USA in June were “mineral fuels, mineral oils and products”, “inorganic chemicals”, “plastics and their products”, “rubber, rubber goods” and “organic chemicals”, respectively.
In the January-June period of 2023, the countries with the highest chemical exports were listed as Russia, Spain, Netherlands, Italy, Germany, Romania, USA, Iraq, England and Belgium.
“We expect our exports to have a more competitive structure”
Adil Pelister, Chairman of the Board of Directors of IKMIB, whose views were included in the statement, noted that they will continue to work, produce and export without stopping to achieve their export targets until the end of the year.
Pelister used the following statements:
“Compared to last year, there was a 25% decrease in our exports. In the first six months, our exports decreased by 13,5% and amounted to $14.6 billion. This year, developments in oil and petrochemical prices, which are the raw materials of our sector, stand out among the factors that caused the decline in our exports. Oil and commodity prices, which were high last year, are low this year. On the other hand, our exports are negatively affected as the priority is given to the domestic market in the sales of our fertilizer and pharmaceutical industries. We could not achieve the desired performance in pharmaceutical exports.
On the other hand, the impact of the recession in EU countries, the largest export market of our industry, continues. In addition to all these, the nine-day Eid al-Adha coinciding with June also affected the export performance in June. We expect our exports to reach a more competitive structure with the inflation, exchange rate and interest balance set on a healthy path.”
Source: AA / Prepared by Irem Yildiz