The Turkish steel exporters achieved a 20 percent increase between January 1 and May 31 compared to the same period last year, reaching $5.9 billion in exports to nearly 200 destinations.
Chairman of Turkish Steel Exporters' Association Adnan Aslan said even though the amount of steel exports of Turkey declined to 7.8 million tons with a decrease of 5.1 percent in the first give months of the year compared to the same period last year, it rose to $5.9 billion in value with an increase of 20 percent in the same period.
"Our steel exports continue to grow, making a very significant contribution to our country's exports. International steel prices are on the rise. We anticipate that by the end of 2018 our steel exports will surge by 30 percent in value to $15 billion compared to 2017," Aslan said.
Aslan stressed that they will try to raise this rate with the activities to be realized. "We prepare reports for the sector to protect its share in the existing markets, give information to our companies and guide them," Aslan continued, adding that they also organize trade delegations within the framework of product and development (P&D) projects, carry out promotional activities for the Turkish steel industry and realize social responsibility projects. "We are working in coordination with the Economy Ministry through all the proceedings within the scope of various trade precautionary investigations against our companies or our steel industry. We are also involved in global projects realized by our country. Today 80 percent of the pipes in the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline [TANAP] are made of Turkish steel," he noted.
Highlighting that the Turkish steel industry is among the top 10 in the world in terms of production, Aslan said the Turkish steel industry exports its quality products with competitive prices to nearly 200 destinations, adding that Turkey ranked eighth in production, following China, Japan, India, the U.S., Russia, South Korea and Germany.
He listed the regions where the exports of Turkish steel industry are high which included the European Union, the Middle East and North America. Aslan suggested that although the steel demand from the European Union and North America, which are in a significant position in regional exports, is inclined to increase, protective measures are prevalent in these markets.
"Southeast Asia is one of the regions where we have a relatively small share in imports, but we want to increase our exports. We could increase our exports in the Southeast Asia region especially in Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia due to the decrease in China's exports in 2017," Aslan said.
Aslan stated that they have been working against the protective measures which have frequently occupied the world agenda recently. Recalling that the United States has launched a measure under Section 232, providing temporary exemption to certain countries, Aslan said as of June, the exclusion of the European Union, Canada and Mexico has provided the Turkish steel industry with a somewhat advantageous position. "We anticipate that our industry will partially compensate for losses in the U.S. in the third and fourth quarters of 2018," Aslan continued. "Meanwhile, the EU launched a safeguard measure at the end of March to prevent imports that could not enter the U.S. due to the Section 232 measure," Aslan said, noting that the association is also engaged in the necessary initiatives in this investigation.
Aslan also said the association will participate in the hearing to be held on September 12.