On June 1, the Turkish Exporters' Assembly (TIM) released Turkey's export figures for the month of May. According to the TIM statement, the country's exports in May increased by 34.48 compared to the same month of last year to reach $12.3 billion. Meanwhile, Turkey's exports rose by 36.36 percent in the first five months of 2008 compared to the same period in 2007, to reach US$55.07 billion.
In addition, Turkey's exports over the 12 months up to the end of May went up by 28.4 percent to US$120.65 billion, TIM Chairman Oguz Satici said. In May, Turkey's iron and steel exports registered an increase of 38.30 percent on US$ basis for the past 12 months, climbing to US$1.965 billion.
The sector with the highest export volume in May was motor vehicles and automotive spare parts with US$2.5 billion, followed by steel exports with US$1.96 billion and chemical products with a total export value of US$1.5 billion. The share of steel exports in Turkey's May export figures was 16 percent on a Turkish Lira basis, following motor vehicles and automotive spare parts which accounted for a 20.65 percent share.