160 Companies from the Aegean Region Make Export Champions List

In the list of Export Champions announced by Turkey's Exporters Assembly, 160 companies from the Aegean Region succeeded in entering the list in 2019. In TİM's top 1,000 exporters list in 2018, 158 exporting companies from the Aegean Region were included. The Aegean Region was the most represented region on the list after the Marmara Region, while İzmir, with 83 companies on the top 1,000 exporters list, maintained its second-place position after İstanbul. Aegean export champions earned Turkey USD 19.761 billion in foreign exchange in 2019. In the list of the top 1,000 exporting companies, which is defined as the Champions League of exports and announced annually by Turkey's Exporters Assembly, 160 companies from the Aegean Region were included based on their 2019 performance. Aegean exporters on TİM's top 1,000 exporters list realized 20 percent of the exports of the top 1,000 exporters.

18 companies from the Aegean Region made their debut on the top 1,000 exporters list

On TİM's 1,000 exporters list, 142 companies from the Aegean Region maintained their positions, while 18 companies became new members of the top 1,000 exporters list in 2019. Star Rafineri A.Ş., which entered Istanbul Chamber of Industry's list of the largest 500 industrial establishments this year at 5th place, also made its debut on TİM's 1,000 Exporters List at 17th place. On TİM's top 1,000 exporters list, İzmir was represented with 83 companies, while exporters from Denizli were included with 26 companies. 23 exporting companies from Manisa achieved success in entering the champions league of exports. 7 companies from Aydın, 6 each from Kütahya and Balıkesir, 5 from Muğla, and 1 each from Afyonkarahisar and Uşak experienced the joy of entering the champions league of exports. Türkiye Petrol Rafinerileri A.Ş., which entered the list as a company based in Kocaeli but also has a refinery in İzmir and conducts a large portion of its exports through its İzmir refinery, ranked third in Turkey with USD 3.411 billion in exports, while Vestel Dış Ticaret A.Ş., Turkey's 7th largest company, brought USD 2.194 billion in foreign exchange to Turkey. Pergamon-Status Dış Ticaret A.Ş. with USD 739.111 million and Petkim Petrokimya Holding A.Ş. with USD 622.022 million in exports held the third and fourth positions on the list. Among Manisa companies, Vestel Ticaret A.Ş. ranked first in Manisa, while Başak Metal Tic. Ve San. A.Ş. from Denizli maintained its top position among Denizli companies with USD 365.465 million in exports. In Muğla, KLC Gıda Ürünleri İth. İhr. ve Tic. A.Ş., a company of Kılıç Holding, achieved the highest export volume from Muğla this year with USD 180.782 million in exports. Uğur Soğutma A.Ş. brought USD 102.763 million in foreign exchange to Turkey, establishing itself as Aydın's highest exporting company on the list.

With digitalization, innovation, R&D and design, more of our companies will enter the top 1,000

Jak Eskinazi, Coordinator President of Aegean Exporters Associations, stated that they are proud of the fact that the number of companies from the Aegean Region on the top 1,000 exporters list announced by Turkey's Exporters Assembly has increased regularly from 118 to 160 since 2012, and that they will focus on work emphasizing digitalization, innovation, R&D, design and branding to ensure that more companies from the Aegean Region feature on the top 1,000 exporters list in the coming period. Pointing out that Turkey organized its first digital fair in the footwear and leather goods sector as Shoedex2020 Footwear and Leather Goods Fair on 1-4 June 2020 following the pandemic, Eskinazi said, "On 12-16 October 2020, we will organize Turkey's first Food Virtual Fair—The Fource. In today's environment where the pandemic does not allow physical marketing, we are trying to ensure continuity in our exports through digital fairs and trade delegations. In the January-August period of 2020, we realized USD 8.1 billion in exports to 214 countries and free zones. By harvesting the results of the projects we implemented in the last four months of 2020, we aim to close 2020 with an increase in exports and to feature more of our companies on TİM's top 1,000 Exporters List in the coming year," he said.