The Turkish Steel Exporters' Association (CIB) has stated that the Turkish steel industry began the New Year with increases in both export volume and value. In January this year, Turkey's steel exports increased by 19 percent year on year to 1.5 million mt, while the value of these exports totaled $854 million, up 36.2 percent on year-on-year basis, according to the data released by the Turkish Steel Exporters' Association (CIB).
In January, Turkey's main steel export destination was the EU, which received 366,000 mt of steel products from Turkey. The EU was followed by the Middle East and North Africa, which imported 348,000 mt and 168,000 mt of Turkish steel products, respectively. In the given month, the US, Ethiopia, Hong Kong, Yemen and Spain recorded the highest year-on-year increases in steel product imports from Turkey.
Meanwhile, in January, Turkey's main exported steel product was rebar with total exports amounting to 635,000 mt. Rebar was followed by welded pipe exports totaling 150,000 mt, wire rod exports amounting to 139,000 mt, hot rolled flat steel exports totaling 126,000 mt, and steel section exports reaching 113,000 mt.
“We made a good start to 2017 with a 19 percent increase in our steel exports, which exceeded our expectations. We had also been experiencing some decline in the value of our steel exports. We reversed this decline in January and achieved an increase of 36.2 percent. The increase in volume was largely due to the increases in exports to the EU and there was also a significant increase in our exports to the Far East. Meanwhile, our steel industry, which stands out with its high-grade products and competitive prices, has begun to gain market share in the Far East region,” commented CIB chairman Namık Ekinci.