Pınar Taşdelen, Chairman of the Board of Uludag Textile Exporters’ Association (UTİB) states that the textile industry exported approximately 1.3 billion dollars in 2024. China’s return to the market and the recession in Europe stand out among the reasons for the limited exports. The biggest problems of its members are energy costs, raw material prices, logistics disruptions and the global economic slowdown. The 2025 target is 5% export growth. Taşdelen emphasizes the need for increased government support, lower energy costs and the adoption of new technologies. She also emphasizes the importance of sustainability and digital transformation.
How did you spend 2024 on a sectoral basis? What about your export figures?
“Pınar Taşdelen: For the Textile and Raw Materials sector, 2024 was a period in which the effects of global and local economic developments were widely seen. As UTIB, we are completing the year 2024 with exports of approximately 1 billion 300 million dollars, similar to the previous year. This value is in parallel with the same period last year. When we look at the main reasons for the limited increase in exports this year, external factors such as China’s strong return to the market after the pandemic on a global scale and the ongoing recession in our main market, the European continent, come to the fore. In addition, in Türkiye, high inflation, which increased production costs, and the pressure of exchange rate policies caused our producers to struggle in price competition. While this situation directly affected our exports, our companies’ concerns about market loss unfortunately continued throughout 2024. However, all these difficulties did not diminish our determination and our power to produce innovative solutions. As UTIB, we continued our efforts to support our industry in markets such as the USA, Germany, Italy, France and Russia, where we are strong. By participating in many events on physical and digital platforms, we made the sector more visible in the international arena. We contributed to our manufacturers to seize new opportunities by participating in important fairs such as Heimtextil Frankfurt, PV New York and Intertextile Shanghai. We are also working with determination for our sector to adapt to the European Green Deal, circular economy, digitalization and the Carbon Regulation Mechanism at the Border. This year, we crowned the Ecological Textiles Development of International Competitiveness Project with a visit to Finland and our companies had the opportunity to examine good practice examples on site.”
What are your 2025 targets?
“Pınar Taşdelen: When we look at 2025, we aim for export growth of 5 percent for our sector, although it is not very easy. In order to achieve this target, we believe that government support should be increased, exchange rate policies should be producer and exporter friendly, and energy and labor costs should be regulated. Providing appropriate financing opportunities especially for our SMEs is critical for our sector to survive and maintain sustainable growth.
Today, we are the sixth largest textile exporter in the world. Despite the problems we have faced in the past period, we firmly believe that we will reach our goal of third place in the world by maintaining this position and moving it further. As UTIB, we continue our efforts to contribute to the sector and increase the competitiveness of our members with determination.”
What was the biggest problem of your members in 2024?
“Pınar Taşdelen: In 2024, we can list the main problems faced by our members as follows:
– Increase in energy costs: The rise in natural gas and electricity prices in particular significantly increased production costs.
– Fluctuations in raw material prices: The instability in raw material prices such as cotton and yarn made production planning difficult.
– Logistical problems and supply chain disruptions: Logistical problems and disruptions in the supply chain after the pandemic negatively affected production processes.
– Decline in competitiveness: Low-cost production in Far Eastern countries weakened the competitiveness of the Turkish textile industry.
– Global economic slowdown: The global economic slowdown reduced consumer spending and lowered demand for the textile industry.”
How do you hope these problems can be solved in the new year?
“Pınar Taşdelen: Government policies to reduce energy costs could provide significant relief for the sector. The transition to renewable energy sources and energy efficiency projects are important steps in this regard. Expanding credit facilities, lowering interest rates and government-sponsored programs can help solve the sector’s liquidity problem. More efficient and sustainable production with new technologies and production methods will increase the sector’s competitiveness. Acting in accordance with environmentally friendly and ethical production standards will allow the sector to develop products that meet consumer preferences and open up to new markets. Market Diversification: Expanding into new markets and increasing product diversity will help spread risks and support growth. Digital Transformation: Technologies such as artificial intelligence and big data analytics will optimize production processes and strengthen customer relationships. Sustainability: We must continue to work on issues such as the use of environmentally friendly materials, waste management and reducing our carbon footprint.”
