Out of the 12 exporters’ associations operating under the umbrella of the Aegean Exporters’ Associations (EIB), four started 2026 with an increase in exports, while eight failed to match their export performance of January 2025.
Agricultural and industrial exports declined, mining exports increased
Exports of industrial products by the Aegean Exporters’ Associations declined by 3%, falling from USD 775 million to USD 749 million, while agricultural exports decreased by 2%, from USD 595 million to USD 583 million.
The mining sector, however, carried its strong performance from 2025 into 2026, increasing exports by 14% from USD 100.6 million to USD 114.8 million.
Iron and steel maintained the top position
The Aegean Ferrous and Non-Ferrous Metals Exporters’ Association increased its January exports by USD 2 million, reaching USD 214 million, and maintained its leading position. The association’s annual exports rose by 9%, from USD 2.39 billion to USD 2.606 billion.
Mining exports increased by 14%
After increasing its exports by 6% in 2025 to USD 1.385 billion, the Aegean Minerals Exporters’ Association (EMIB) boosted its exports by 14% in January 2026. EMIB, which exported USD 100.6 million in January last year, achieved USD 114.8 million in exports in January 2026. Over the past 12 months, EMIB’s exports exceeded USD 1.4 billion, up 6%, moving one step closer to its USD 1.5 billion export target for the end of 2026.
The Aegean Furniture, Paper and Forest Products Exporters’ Association contributed USD 63 million to EIB’s exports, while the Aegean Tobacco Exporters’ Association recorded exports of USD 62 million.
The Aegean Textile and Raw Materials Exporters’ Association achieved USD 30.3 million in exports, while the Aegean Olive and Olive Oil Exporters’ Association posted USD 17.5 million, and the Aegean Leather and Leather Products Exporters’ Association recorded USD 14.4 million in exports.
Exports from the Aegean Region decreased by 3%
Exports from the Aegean Region declined by 3%, falling from USD 2.22 billion in January 2025 to USD 2.155 billion in January 2026.
İzmir exported USD 1.089 billion, while Denizli, with USD 369 million, moved ahead of Manisa to take second place. Manisa ranked third with exports of USD 322 million.
Muğla broke the regional record for export growth, increasing its exports by 31%, from USD 81 million to USD 106.5 million.
Balıkesir generated USD 96.8 million, Aydın USD 83.7 million, Afyonkarahisar USD 33.7 million, Kütahya USD 31 million, and Uşak USD 26 million in export revenues.
Eskinazi: “Our exports are likely to stagnate for the fourth year”
Stating that importers in the European Union, Türkiye’s largest export market, are acting with caution and uncertainty, Jak Eskinazi, Coordinator Chairman of the Aegean Exporters’ Associations, said this situation has negatively affected export figures. He emphasized that exports, which have stagnated for the past three years, are likely to show a similar pattern in 2026, a trend confirmed by January’s export data.
Eskinazi noted that with inflation exceeding 30% in Türkiye at the start of 2026, prices of all inputs increased, undermining the international competitiveness of Turkish exporters.
“Türkiye is 40–60% more expensive than Far Eastern countries, and around 20% more expensive than countries such as Egypt and Poland. Naturally, we were unable to fully reflect cost increases in our prices. Despite the positive contribution of exchange rate parity, we could not maintain our January 2025 export level. Even though parity provided a positive contribution of around USD 80 million to our exports, we still ended the month in negative territory.
“Meanwhile, in our USD 645 billion foreign trade volume, the European Union, our largest market with a share of USD 233 billion, first signed a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with MERCOSUR countries in South America, and subsequently with India. These agreements have caused concern among Turkish exporters. In this process, our priority must be to update the Customs Union and accelerate initiatives for similar cooperation agreements.”
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