The Turkish
Automotive Manufacturers Association (OSD) held its 40th foundation ceremony last week. Speaking at the ceremony, OSD chairman Kudret Onen said that, despite the contraction in the domestic market and the almost sideways trend in production, the increase in exports is promising for the industry. "The Turkish
automotive industry is continuing to increase capacity. Most of our capacity focuses on exports and the Turkish
automotive industry continues to grow as an export-oriented industry. In 2014, exports reached $22.8 billion and 1.75 million in units. To sum up, we have benefitted from subsidies and are going through a healthy investment period," he added.
Commenting on the 2014 figures, Mr. Onen stated that production increased by four percent, supported by higher exports, and this increase is attributed to new projects. He went on to say that the domestic market contracted by 10 percent, while export growth reached seven percent thanks to new automobile production projects.
"Despite the expected sideways trend in the domestic market for 2015, the
automotive industry aims to maintain 2014 levels in terms of production. We maintain an export-oriented growth and export 75 percent of our production. The
automotive industry will break its own records in 2015 and will be the number one sector in terms of exports," The OSD chairman concluded.