Turkey: Machinery exports reach $4.3B in Q1

ISTANBUL

Turkey's machinery exports reached $4.3 billion in the first three months of 2019, an exporters' association said Monday.

The sector's exports soared 4.4% in the first quarter versus the same period in 2018, the Machinery Exporters' Association (MAIB) said in a statement.

Turkey's machinery exports also rose by around 17% to reach 750,000 tons on the basis of quantity, the statement read.

"In the narrowing global market, the world's machinery exporters have to decrease prices, Turkish exporters are also affected from this situation," said Kutlu Karavelioglu, the head of MAIB.

During the last five quarters, average price in Turkey's machinery exports dropped to $5.6 per kilogram from $6.3, he added.

He also said the MAIB focuses on emerging markets to take more share.

Turkey's machinery exports were $17.1 billion in 2018, while the export-to-import ratio in the machinery sector was 64%.

Overall, Turkey earned $168.02 billion from exports in 2018, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute.