Turkish-made carpets are the new favorites of the American continent as hygiene becomes more important than ever before due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

The carpet exports to the continent have jumped by 34.6% year-on-year during the first 10 months of 2020, reaching $750.5 million (TL 6 billion).

Turkey Exporters Assembly (TIM) Carpet Industries Board Chairperson Salahattin Kaplan told Anadolu Agency (AA) Tuesday that the sector has been improving itself in terms of foreign sales in recent years and is surviving the pandemic period very well.

Kaplan emphasized that hygiene came as an important factor in the increase in exports.

“A carpet is a must-have for hygienic places,” he said.

“Turkish carpet has now become the preferred brand of the American market,” he said, noting that carpet exports are made to nearly all parts of the world.

The U.S. has secured the top place in terms of Turkish carpet imports. The country was followed by Saudi Arabia, Germany, the United Kingdom, Iraq, Egypt, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Libya, Iran and Belgium, Kaplan said, noting that the sector is not working as a single-market oriented industry but exports to the whole world.

He added that they work to improve and preserve the existing markets while keeping an eye out for alternative businesses.