According to the data provided by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK), in 2012 Turkey's seamless pipe imports amounted to 203,237 metric tons, decreasing six percent year on year. In 2011, the seamless pipe imports of the country had risen by 16.4 percent compared to the previous year. The value of these imports in 2012 came to $295.5 million, decreasing by 13.5 percent year on year.
In December last year, Turkey's seamless pipe imports fell 51.2 percent compared to November, which had witnessed the highest monthly volume for the whole year, and were down 23.1 percent compared to December 2011, amounting to 12,412 metric tons.
Turkey's seamless pipe imports from China in 2012 amounted to 96,903 metric tons, up 36.8 percent year on year, while Russia followed China, exporting 24,910 mt of seamless pipes to Turkey last year, decreasing by 40 percent compared to 2011. In the third and the fourth quarters of the year, Turkey's seamless pipe imports from the CIS amounted respectively to 7,835 mt and 8,084 mt, recording the lowest levels since the first quarter of 2009, while the contrary was observed in China's case with exports of 31,151 mt and 28,170 mt of seamless pipes to Turkey in the third and fourth quarters of 2012, constituting the highest historical volumes.
Turkey's seamless pipe import distribution with respect to source countries in 2012 is as follows:
