Trade Minister Mehmet Mus said, “In May, exports increased by 15.2% compared to last year and reached $19 billion. This is the highest May export of all time.”
Trade Minister Mehmet Mus announced the foreign trade figures for May at the press conference he held with the President of the Turkish Exporters Assembly (TIM) Ismail Gulle at the Conference Hall of the Ministry of Commerce.
Pointing out that Turkey achieved a great success in exports in 2021, Mus said, “Our country continued its strong performance in exports in the first five months of 2022. In May, we left behind, our exports increased by 15.2% compared to the same month of the previous year and reached $19 billion. This is the highest May export of all time. Thus, we broke records in the first 5 months by reaching the highest monthly export values in all of the first 5 months of 2022.”
Mehmet Mus stated that the foreign trade volume in May increased by 31.1% compared to the previous year and rose to $48.6 billion, while the import in May was $29.6 billion.
“The reason for the increase in imports is energy prices”
Noting that the energy item occupied an important place in imports with a share of $6.9 billion in May, Mus said:
“As a net energy importer, Turkey, which is highly integrated with global markets, cannot be affected by energy prices. I would like to underline once again that the main reason for the increase in our imports is the increasing energy prices in the world. At this point, our exports in the January-May period reached $96.8 billion, excluding energy, and our foreign trade volume increased to $202.8 billion. In addition, the ratio of our exports to imports in the same period was 91.3%, again excluding energy. With our exports in the last 12 months reaching $242.6 billion, we are approaching the $250 billion export target pointed out by our President for the end of 2022, with determined steps.”
Stating that the world economy has been going through important tests since 2020, Mus said that the global economy could not fully leave the winter behind in the current period.
Noting that the problems in the global economy have combined to cause a new global crisis, Mus said that despite the increasing demand in the post-pandemic period, supply problems have become chronic due to the continuation of raw material and logistics-related disruptions in supply chains, and this situation brings with it an increase in global inflation.
Pointing out that the Russia-Ukraine War was added to these developments, Mus stated that according to the World Bank, the war created the biggest supply shock in commodity markets in recent years.
Noting that the European Union (EU) decided to impose an oil embargo on Russia until the end of the year and the quarantine measures in China were lifted to a large extent as of June 1, the rise in oil prices accelerated, while sharp rises were recorded in the prices of other energy and food commodities, Mus evaluated global economic developments.
“The next two years will be very difficult, especially in underdeveloped countries”
Foreseeing that the next two years will be very difficult, especially in underdeveloped countries, Minister Mus emphasized that the measures taken to combat inflation strengthen the possibility of a global recession.
Pointing out that weakening growth means a decrease in export revenues for many countries, Mus said that while everyone is talking about global inflation, there is also a growing global debt crisis in the background.
Stating that while the global debt level broke a record, the strengthening of the US dollar made it difficult for developing countries to pay their debts, Mus said:
“In such a global environment, the Turkish economy continued the growth momentum it achieved in 2021 in the first quarter of 2022 as well. Turkey successfully maintained its high-rate economic growth performance by catching a 7.3% increase in gross domestic product in the first quarter of 2022. Thus, our country continued its economic growth for 7 uninterrupted quarters and once again positively differentiated from the world in this field. If we look at the details of our growth rate, the contribution of net exports to the growth experienced in the first quarter of the year was approximately 3.5 points, with almost half of the growth coming from net exports. In other words, our exports once again shouldered growth.”
Noting that the Industrial Production Index, which is one of the leading indicators of growth and showing that the wheels are turning in industrial production, increased by 9.6% annually, Mus stated that the capacity utilization rate in the manufacturing industry increased by 0.2 points in May compared to the previous month, and reached 78%.
Emphasizing that the aforementioned data point to the fact that economic growth is based on a balanced and sustainable basis, Mus said, “In other words, Turkey is increasing its production power day by day and accelerating its breakthroughs in the industry.”
“We continue commercial diplomacy uninterrupted”
Mus stated that as the Ministry, they continue their commercial diplomacy activities uninterruptedly in order to pave the way for exporters in the increasingly difficult global business environment, and explained that they comprehensively evaluated bilateral trade and economic relations with countries such as Bosnia and Herzegovina, Spain, Algeria, Colombia, Ethiopia and Pakistan throughout May. Pointing out that they carry out intensive consultations with the umbrella organizations of the business world, apart from official contacts, Mus said that they continue their efforts to facilitate foreign trade without slowing down. Reminding that they have implemented innovations that will contribute to the country’s becoming a center of attraction in transit trade, Mus said, “I believe that our exporters will continue to do their part to increase our exports of high value-added goods and services in these difficult times.”
Stating that the way to increase the economic welfare of the country is through high added value production with the help of qualified workforce and technology, Mus said:
“The share of actors who adapt to technology and sustainability trends early and increase productivity by making investment decisions in this direction will definitely increase in the global economy. The only way for Turkey to get ahead of its peers is through here. For this reason, we express at every opportunity the investment, production, employment and export equation pointed out by our President. As the Ministry, we will continue to stand by you with all our means and in the strongest way possible to move our country among the leading countries in value-added exports. I believe that with your efforts, exports will be the main factor of our economic growth in 2022, as it was the case last year. In this sense, I believe that we will continue the breakthrough we have shown in our industry in recent years, and that we will make the current growth environment in which exports and investments are the driving force sustainable.”
Source: Trthaber / Translated by Irem Yildiz