A trade and investment expert based in Istanbul has told WTiN.com that the prospects for Turkey’s textile industry are bright, despite the current economic and political challenges facing the country.
The value of Turkey’s currency, the lira, has dropped by 45% this year due to a range of financial difficulties being experienced by the country. And US President Donald Trump announced on 10 August that US import tariffs on Turkish steel and aluminium will be doubled. The trade dispute emerged following Turkey’s detention of a Christian evangelical pastor.
However, Bilim Civan, a market-entry consultant in Turkey with Alliance Experts, which provides sourcing consultancy to companies around the world, believes that the rapid decline of the lira represents a significant opportunity for Turkish textile manufacturers.
Commenting on the Turkish economy as a whole, she tells WTiN: “The recent problems with the USA and devaluation of the Turkish lira are an opportunity for Turkish exports, and anyone who wants to import from Turkey.” She explains that this is especially true for labour-intensive sectors such as the textile industry.
“We saw this in the 1980s and 1990s, when the Turkish lira was constantly devaluating, and the textile exports were booming,” she says.
She notes that during the following period, when the lira was stable, the cost of Turkish textiles rose compared to foreign currencies. “Therefore, the Far East took over some of the production,” she says. “However, producing in the Far East can only be competitive in big quantities.”
Civan adds: “Turkish textile manufacturing was professionalised during this period, with international standards for production.”
Conceding that, amid Turkey’s current economic difficulties, some manufacturers that have little capital will be forced to leave the market, she notes: “Rapid changes in the exchange rates will affect investment decisions, and the purchase of foreign materials will decrease.”
However, she says: “We don’t believe that the current crisis will stop the textile sector. The opposite: it will be a reason for producers to focus more on exports, and increase the level of quality and production standards.”
Civan also says Turkey is well-positioned due to the evolution in its range of textile products over the past few years. For example, she notes that it has introduced more eco-friendly and organic textiles, as well as a wider range of high-performance fabrics for sports and outdoor wear, with properties such as chemical-resistant, stain-proof, water-resistant, sturdy, stretchable and dry-touch.
These factors are helping Turkey compete with sourcing destinations in other parts of the world, such as Asia.
Civan also points to other advantages that continue to help Turkey’s textile industry, including: its geographic location, as it is close to key markets such as the EU and Russia; its young population, which helps maintain competitive labour costs; the predominance of SME manufacturers, which tend to be flexible and quick; and Turkey’s production of its own raw materials – it is the seventh-largest cotton producer in the world.
She adds that the industry is also benefiting from investments over recent years in design and technology, driven by the increased demands of overseas customers. As well as purchasing better machinery, “the rise of international trade has made producers more technologically qualified and they are following the latest trends in fashion,” she says.
