Turkish Carpets Adorn Homes in 181 Countries

Turkish carpet manufacturers exported 429 million 566 thousand square meters of carpets to 181 countries and free zones in the first 9 months of 2024, generating a revenue of 2 billion 86 million 182 thousand dollars. The sector saw a 6.7% increase in exports compared to the same period last year, with the majority of revenue coming from machine carpets at 1 billion 628 million 408 thousand dollars. This was followed by tufted carpets at 382 million 620 thousand dollars, hand-woven carpets at 68 million 225 thousand dollars, and kilims at 6 million 888 thousand dollars. The exports of hand-woven carpets increased by 101.4% compared to the same period last year, while kilim exports saw a 35% increase. The United States was the top destination for Turkish carpet exports with 586 million 386 thousand dollars, followed by Saudi Arabia with 222 million 31 thousand dollars, Iraq with 166 million 126 thousand dollars, and the United Kingdom with 136 million 221 thousand dollars. Japan saw the highest increase in exports at 96.3%, followed by the Netherlands at 73.2%, and Iraq at 63.2%. The Southeastern Anatolia Exporters' Associations (GAİB) maintained its position as the top exporter with 1 billion 416 million 265 thousand dollars, accounting for 67.9% of Turkey's carpet exports. The President of the Southeastern Anatolia Carpet Exporters' Union, Zeynal Abidin Kaplan, mentioned the challenges faced by the sector in 2024 but highlighted efforts to expand into new markets such as Malaysia, Australia, Mauritania, Senegal, India, and Japan. Despite the impact of conflicts in Ukraine, Russia, and the Middle East, efforts are being made to mitigate these effects and achieve end-of-year targets.