The Turkish automotive industry achieved exports worth 3.293 billion US dollars in March. According to data from the Uludağ Automotive Industry Exporters' Association (OİB), the sector's exports decreased by 6.3% compared to the same month last year.
The automotive sector, which topped the list of Turkish exports, maintained its share of 16.9% of total exports. In the first quarter of the year, the sector's exports increased by 4.3% to reach 9.896 billion US dollars.
The supply industry, the largest product group in the sector, maintained its export level in March, reaching 1.318 billion US dollars. Passenger car exports decreased by 20% to 909 million US dollars, while exports of vehicles designated for goods transport decreased by 3.5% to 553 million US dollars.
Conversely, exports of buses and small and medium buses increased by 10% to 293 million US dollars, and tractor exports rose by 5% to 178 million US dollars. Exports in the "Other" category amounted to 42 million US dollars.
In March, exports to Germany, our largest market, decreased by 6% to 525 million US dollars. France ranked second with 456 million US dollars, while exports to Italy increased by 8% to 306 million US dollars.
Baran Çelik, Chairman of the Board of the Automotive Manufacturers Association (OIB), stated that despite the limited contraction in March, the sector maintained its leadership, saying: "Despite the decline in passenger car sales, the increase in bus sales (including small and medium buses) demonstrates the competitiveness of our product diversity in the global market. We are steadily moving forward to achieve our export targets by the end of the year."
