Turkish machinery exports at nearly $15B in Jan-Oct

By Tuba Sahin

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey's machinery exports hit $14.8 billion in January-October, an exporters' group said.

The sector posted a 12% year-on-year increase in the first 10 months of this year, the Machinery Exporters' Association (MAIB) said in a press release.

The most exported products of the sector included industrial and domestic refrigeration, washers and dryers, internal combustion engines, construction and mining machinery, and pumps and compressors.

Kutlu Karavelioglu, the group's head, said Germany's economic shrinkage is hitting the sector.

"Due to the contraction in the second quarter, German factories are losing work, reducing their supplies, and the possibility of the U.S. applying new tariffs on auto imports from the EU also pulls down expectations for the coming period," he added.

He said exporters compensated for the slowdown in Germany with other countries that have significant shares in the machinery foreign trade, such as the U.S., U.K., France, South Korea, and Mexico.

Karavelioglu said his group is stepping up efforts to blunt the negative impact through steps such as taking part in fairs in Germany.

In October, the country exported machinery products worth $1.68 billion.