Western Mediterranean companies, which have significant potential in Turkiye’s marble industry exports, turned to India and Middle Eastern countries to expand the market in the marble sector.
Marble, which constitutes $314 million 390 thousand of the approximately $500 million of marble exports of the Western Mediterranean Exporters Association (BAIB), is found mostly by China. Industry representatives, looking for alternative markets to China, started to organize trade delegation visits to different countries.
BAIB Chairman of the Board of Directors, Umit Mirza Cavusoglu, told the AA correspondent that there are companies in the region that have reached serious export figures in the mining and especially the marble sector.
Stating that the mining group that includes marble ranks second among the most exported sectors, Cavusoglu noted that the sector started this year with an increase as well.
The sector started the year with an increase of 33.35%
Stating that in the first month of the year, the mining group exported $43 million 897 thousand, an increase of 33.35% compared to January of last year, Cavusoglu emphasized that $23 million 652 thousand of this figure was made up of marble.
Stating that marble was mostly sent to China, Cavusoglu said, “Our exports decreased due to the stagnation in construction in China. After the second half of the year, our exports started to increase as China recovered a little and our companies searched for different countries. We managed to close the year without a negative with the serious increases after the second half.”
Cavusoglu stated that they are working on alternative markets as a union in order not to be tied to a single market.
Cavusoglu explained that, on the one hand, they were involved in the Competitiveness Development Project supported by the Ministry of Commerce, and on the other hand, they visited the recipient countries with industry stakeholders. “India and Middle Eastern countries come to the fore. If we increase our share there, we can eliminate the decrease in China. We want to further increase our presence here. If we can do this, we will increase our exports even more.”
Umit Mirza Cavusoglu emphasized that they aim to increase mineral and marble exports above last year’s figure with such studies.
Source: AA / Prepared by Irem Yildiz