Machinery exports surge in January-April

Turkey’s machinery exports boosted in the first four months of this year, showed data from an exporters’ association on May 10.

The machinery export increased 18.1 percent year-on-year in January-April period, the Machinery Exporters’ Association (MAİB) said in a statement.

The country earned $5.8 billion from its machinery exports between January and April, up 6.5 percent from the same period last year, MAIB noted.

The machinery sector’s exports to the U.S, U.K., Italy and France increased.

Slowdown in German industry, Turkey’s top export market, led to the drop of 8.8% exports to the country during the same period.

Kutlu Karavelioğlu, head of the association, said export-to-import coverage rate in the sector reached 78.8 percent in January-April.

Karavelioğlu said the sector should be placed among the strategic sectors.

“Implementing policies and supporting the export of high-tech goods and products, especially machinery, should be a priority,” he added.