Challenges Persist, Yet Promising Developments Emerge
As the export community, we concluded March with exports totaling $23.4 billion, marking a 3.2 percent increase compared to the same month last year. Every monthly performance surpassing $23 billion is significant as it reflects both our nation's production strength and the determination of our exporters. In an environment marked by global uncertainties, this outcome can be considered a success.
I would particularly like to underscore the 140 percent increase in our defense industry exports in March. This growth demonstrates that our defense sector is achieving success not only in traditional areas but also in high value-added production domains. Nevertheless, we cannot overlook the decline in our traditional sectors. Six of our sectors, including ready-to-wear, carpets, and machinery, ended all three months of the quarter with negative figures. This picture offers us a clear warning regarding our export target of $280 billion for 2025.
With the March data, our first-quarter performance also came into view. We closed the first quarter of the year at $65.3 billion, reflecting a 2.5 percent increase compared to the same period last year. We must not forget that to reach our 2025 target of $280 billion, we need to raise this rate to at least 7 percent. The imbalance between costs and the exchange rate has significantly increased production expenses for our exporters. In the past two years, our production has even become more expensive than that of many European countries. This situation negatively affects the competitiveness of our industrialists. The steps taken in the fight against inflation are undoubtedly important; however, the process must not rely solely on monetary policies, but should also be supported by measures that foster production and exports. We must acknowledge that without easing the burden on our industrialists, sustainable growth will remain out of reach.
The new tariffs announced by the United States present important opportunities for our country. Although the specifics vary by sector, we are gaining up to a 25 percent advantage over our Asian competitors. Yet, we must remember a hard truth. In dollar terms, our production still remains 50–60 percent more expensive than Asia's. Thus, despite being among the countries subject to the lowest tariff increases, we may still appear costly to American buyers. To turn this new situation into an advantage, we must reclaim the competitiveness we have lost over the past two years. The path forward is clear: we must restore the balance disrupted between costs and the exchange rate. Should we overcome the challenges related to competitiveness, we could increase exports in sectors such as chemicals, automotive, ready-to-wear, textiles, carpets, and furniture by two to three times. In the medium term, we could reach a foreign trade volume of $100 billion between our countries.
To strengthen our export community, we continue to maintain our presence in the field, guiding our firms and helping them access new markets. In this context, we are relentlessly continuing our trade delegation programs. Last month, we organized our Bulgaria Trade Delegation with broad participation. This month, we will visit China. In May, we will organize delegations to Albania, the United States, South Africa, Tunisia, Iraq, and Spain. Throughout the year, we will also be active in various states across the U.S.
Our potential is vast, and our foundation is strong. If we support the efforts of our exporters with determined policies and regain our competitiveness, we can elevate our country to a new league in exports.