The statement made by the Machinery Exporters’ Association (MAIB) included data on Turkey’s machinery exports in the January-July period. In this context, according to the consolidated data of the machinery manufacturing industry, Turkey’s total machinery exports in the said period were 15.8 billion dollars.
The decrease seen as 2.2 percent compared to the same period of the previous year was calculated as 0.9 percent in the exports of the last 12 months, which reached 27.8 billion dollars. The sector, which achieved a 10.4 percent increase in July compared to the same month of the previous year, closed the gap arising from the decline in June with this attack it carried out.
In this period when global recession concerns continue, machinery manufacturers, approaching the previous year’s data, increased their average export per kilogram to 7.4 dollars, 5 times the general average of Turkey. The sector achieved an increase of 11.1 percent in the USA, to which the most exports were made after Germany and Russia.
“A payment corridor should be opened for the continuation of civilian trade with Russia”
The Machinery Exporters’ Association President Kutlu Karavelioğlu, whose assessment on the subject was included in the statement, stated that in a period when the election atmosphere abroad created political risks, regional conflicts that became a global threat increased uncertainties, and that this, although not talked about as much as the decrease in financial risk appetite in the world, created a serious downward trend in the industrial side.
Karavelioğlu said, “In an environment where elections, climate-related crises and frequently escalating conflicts increase uncertainties, it is natural that the feeling of stagnation in the markets turns into an increasing recession concern as the expected interest rate cuts of central banks are delayed. The pressure that became evident in the industrial PMI data is also reflected in the global export data. It is positive that the decrease in our exports remained at the level of 0.9 percent in the last 12 months when interest rates reached their peak worldwide. This data shows our international competitive power.”
Karavelioğlu, who also touched on trade with Russia, said, “If the sanctions against Russia had not limited our trade relations and our figures in this country had not written a negative of 240 million dollars in the last 7 months, our exports in this period would have reached the 16.1 billion dollars we reached last year. If our request for a corridor to be opened for payments for the continuation of civilian trade with Russia is met, we can close the limited decline in our total exports.”
On the other hand, Karavelioğlu stated that the tendency for investment in machinery and equipment is still low in Europe, Turkey’s main market, and that increases in unemployment rates are observed, and reported that the EU, as the global playmaker, has a decisive role in exports.
“We will see intense participation in the Move Program again”
Karavelioğlu, who stated that in the new world where global costs are increasing and profit margins are decreasing, it is necessary to listen to exporters in Turkey first and that the perception that every sector with a complaint about the exchange rate has a value-added problem is not true, noted the following:
“With the Technology-Focused Industry Move Program, where the support and incentives provided by the relevant institutions are managed from a single window in line with the aim of increasing value-added production in our country, important results are achieved that will reduce external dependency in value-added sectors. Our companies included in the program have the opportunity to provide R&D and production competence on the technologies of the future in a planned manner from today. The first call of the Move Program in 2021 was for the machinery industry as a pilot sector. We will also see intense participation in the Rising Innovative Technologies Call of the program, where applications will be received until September 13.”
“One of the elements that will improve the investment environment is the fight against informality”
Karavelioğlu, who stated that in a situation where foreign investments are not at the desired level, the importance of tourism and exports in terms of production and employment will increase exponentially compared to the past, made the following assessment:
“It is worth noting that the framework for attracting foreign investors, which is considered acceptable in the world, has changed. Because the phenomenon of digitalization with artificial intelligence and automation relatively limits the need for foreign investments to be shifted to other countries.
In addition, the high support, attractive incentives and protective armors applied by central countries to their own country industries in terms of green strategies will also prevent investors from shifting to other countries. In this process, it would be appropriate to consult the experience of the machinery sector in Turkey regarding the determination of current problems of the manufacturing industry and solution suggestions. In our opinion, one of the elements that will improve the investment environment is the fight against informality. The informality rate in the machinery sector is at 23.7 percent in general. Companies that employ informal personnel or produce informal money to show salaries low are further increasing the problems that already exist in the employment market. We expect the steps to be taken to combat these companies that negatively affect our competitiveness and scale.”
