Turkish Textile and Clothing Industry

Turkish Textile and Clothing Industry
Turkey is the world's seventh largest cotton producer and
the sixth largest textile/apparel exporter. Turkey's largest
export sector is textiles, which accounts for 37 percent of the
total exports. Turkey is in the top ten synthetic fiber
producers. With the new investments of USD 1 billion by the
existing eight largest manufacturers totaling, their production
capacities will increase from 655 tons to 2,000 tons per day.
These investments aim at decreasing imports and increasing
Turkey's share in the world markets. Turkey's world market
share of spinning and fabric production are as follows: ring
spinning - 2.4 percent, open-end spinning - 2.0 percent, shuttle
looms - 2.5 percent, and shuttleless looms - 1.4 percent. With
initial investments in the Southeastern Anatolia Project (GAP)
the country's cotton production increased to from 700,000 tons
to 1 million tons per year.
Turkey's January 1, 1996 joining of the European Customs
Union brought with it the implementation of EU regulations,
including the recision of quotas on Turkish apparel exports to
member countries. These developments were expected to result in
an increase in textile exports, an enhancement of the investment
climate, improvements in quality, and increases in employment.