Turkey's chemicals industry, one of the country's leading export sectors, is making steady progress toward its goal of permanently ranking second in exports. The chemicals industry achieved second place for the fourth time this year in April.
In April, Spain ranked first in the list of countries with the highest chemical exports, with an export figure of USD 104,476,110.80, followed by the United States in second place and Italy in third.
Adil Pelister, Chairman of the Board of the
Istanbul Chemical Substances and Products Exporters Association (İKMİB), commenting on the chemicals sector's April performance, said: "Our chemicals sector exports continue to grow and have maintained second place for four months.
In April 2019, we achieved USD 1,771,505,574.79 in chemical exports, representing a 30.84% increase compared to April 2018. In the four-month period of 2019, our exports reached USD 6,771,000,000 with a 22.23% increase. In the chemicals sector this month, we exported the most to Spain.
Besides Spain, the other countries in the top three were the United States and Italy. The increase in mineral fuel exports was a major factor in the growth of our sector exports. With the startup of production and exports from Star Refinery, which began operations last year in the petrochemical sector, the growth in mineral fuel exports accelerated.
Star Refinery will meet 25% of Turkey's processed petroleum product needs. Additionally, construction will begin this year on a facility in the Ceyhan petrochemical industrial zone that will produce 450,000 tons of polypropylene annually.
As these and similar large-scale facilities come into operation, our import dependency in sub-sectors will decrease and will have a positive contribution to our exports."
Countries with Highest Chemical Exports in April 2019
| No. |
Country |
April 2018 Value (USD) |
April 2019 Value (USD) |
Change (%) |
| 1 |
Spain |
39,609,043.13 |
104,476,110.80 |
163.77% |
| 2 |
United States |
94,059,801.53 |
94,767,291.09 |
0.75% |
| 3 |
Italy |
53,072,884.65 |
93,195,402.40 |
75.60% |
| 4 |
Iraq |
69,539,109.39 |
81,907,739.75 |
17.79% |
| 5 |
Malta |
3,521,289.74 |
80,942,980.46 |
2,198.67% |
| 6 |
Germany |
81,857,710.38 |
77,908,792.97 |
-4.82% |
| 7 |
Belgium |
17,989,592.22 |
61,004,983.40 |
239.11% |
| 8 |
France |
32,797,629.33 |
46,812,023.28 |
42.73% |
| 9 |
Slovenia |
4,863,557.86 |
45,213,051.44 |
829.63% |
| 10 |
Greece |
29,308,759.48 |
42,927,885.35 |
46.47% |
2019 Monthly Chemical Exports
| Month |
2018 Value (USD) |
2019 Value (USD) |
Difference (%) |
| January |
1,353,600,209.59 |
1,527,317,628.31 |
12.83% |
| February |
1,265,571,373.79 |
1,638,426,414.18 |
29.46% |
| March |
1,566,978,246.63 |
1,834,694,879.12 |
17.08% |
| April |
1,353,993,895.59 |
1,771,505,574.79 |
30.84% |
Chemical Sector Export Sub-sectors in April 2019
|
|
|
2018-2019 |
|
APRIL 2018 |
APRIL 2019 |
% DIFFERENCE |
| Product Group |
Value (USD) |
Value (USD) |
Value |
| Mineral Fuels, Mineral Oils and Products |
182,032,005 |
558,722,686 |
206.94% |
| Plastics and Articles |
494,496,614 |
533,422,222 |
7.87% |
| Inorganic Chemicals |
162,891,590 |
161,786,692 |
-0.68% |
| Rubber and Rubber Articles |
113,510,891 |
103,772,808 |
-8.58% |
| Essential Oils, Cosmetics and Soap |
90,701,433 |
96,498,762 |
6.39% |
| Pharmaceutical Products |
76,720,606 |
82,197,268 |
7.14% |
| Paints, Varnishes, Inks and Preparations |
65,801,347 |
65,582,001 |
-0.33% |
| Miscellaneous Chemical Substances |
53,792,276 |
59,149,737 |
9.96% |
| Organic Chemicals |
45,949,564 |
47,192,254 |
2.70% |
| Cleaning Preparations |
39,180,658 |
36,495,362 |
-6.85% |
| Adhesives, Glues, Enzymes |
19,338,959 |
15,144,605 |
-21.69% |
| Fertilizers |
7,571,228 |
9,535,160 |
25.94% |
| Products Used in Photography and Cinematography |
1,060,660 |
1,120,212 |
5.61% |
| Gunpowder, Explosives and Derivatives |
911,150 |
752,236 |
-17.44% |
| Glycerin, Plant Products, Degras, Fatty Substances |
26,880 |
120,508 |
348.32% |
| Processed Asbestos and Mixtures, Articles |
8,036 |
13,063 |
62.55% |
| Total |
1,353,993,896 |
1,771,505,575 |
30.84% |
