Turkey exports up 15.8 pct in May

By Tuba Sahin and Dilara Zengin

ANKARA (AA) - Turkish exports surged 15.8 percent to $12.5 billion in May, Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci said on Thursday.

This follows a 4 percent increase in the previous month, the minister said.

Exports for the rest of the year are likely to pick up and will hit the highest in record, Zeybekci said.

Zeybekci said total exports in the first five months of the year also surged by 10 percent from the same period last year and reached over $63.1 billion.

"The value of total exports in the last 12 months rose by 5.2 percent to stand at almost $147 billion compared to the previous 12 months," Zeybekci said.

The automotive sector contributed the highest export in May -- nearly $2.6-billion worth -- which is an increase of 28.7 percent compared to the same month last year, according to data released by Turkish Exporters' Assembly.

The second-largest exporting sector -- clothing -- witnessed a slight decrease in exports with a 0.9 percent drop in the month compared to May 2016 and reached $1.4 billion.

Other champion export area was the chemical materials and products sector with $1.32 billion in May, up by 17.4 percent compared to the same month last year, according to the data.

The association revealed that the biggest monthly increase was seen in ship and yacht sector -- 237 percent -- in the month.

Germany, the UK, Iraq, Italy and the US were the main export markets of Turkey, read the data.

Among 20 largest importer countries from Turkey, the most remarkable increase were seen in Turkey's exports to Russia with a 73.4 percent rise.

Exports to Turkey’s main trading partner, the EU, rose by 16 percent month-on-month in May and its share stood at 48.7 percent.

Turkey's exports to its second-biggest trading partner, North America, advanced by 24.2 percent in the month compared to May 2016.