TURKEY - Turkey’s furniture exports jumped 35 percent in the first semester of 2021 compared to the same period in the previous year, marking a record level of USD 2 billion.

Turkey´s main furniture export destinations were Iraq, Germany, the United States, Israel and France, according to data compiled from Istanbul Furniture, Paper and Forestry Products Exporters’ Association. The main export products were cribs, furniture for kids’ bedrooms, dining and sitting rooms.

Ahmet Güleç, the head of the association, informed that the upward trend was expected to continue for many years.

The Turkish furniture sector ranks eighth in the international market, but it wants to climb to fifth place, he said. "We believe that we can do it very easily; we need support for promotion and branding," he added.

Recalling the sector’s export expectation of USD 4 billion for this year, he said the first-half figures proved this target.

However, rising costs of raw materials, such as fabric, medium-density fibreboard and particleboard, as well as electricity price hikes could pull down sales, Güleç said.