Turkey seen prioritising jewellery exports to Middle East, Europe
By David Brough
ISTANBUL, October 14, 2016 – Turkish jewellery exporters are prioritising sales to the Middle East and Europe, Ayhan Guner, chairman of the board of the Jewellery Exporters’ Association, said.
He told Jewellery Outlook in an interview on the sidelines of the Istanbul Jewelry Show that Turkey was rising to the top table in the global ranking of gold jewellery producers and exporters, competing with Italy.
Turkey, a key market place for Europe and the Middle East, is the world’s number 2 jewellery exporter, number 3 producer, and number 5 importer, according to a video of the fair’s organisers UBM Rotaforte.
Speaking via an interpreter, Guner estimated that Turkish jewellery sales to the Middle East were down around 15 percent in value terms this year, due to a combination of political factors, such as the failed coup attempt in Turkey in July, and the civil conflict in Syria.
However, he said that he was confident that Turkish exports to the Middle East and Europe would pick up.
Exporters were looking to increase sales to markets in the Far East, including Hong Kong and Singapore, and North Africa, he added.
Jewellers spoke of better-than-expected footfall on the first day of the Istanbul Jewelry Show on October 13, despite concerns over an unstable political climate in the region.
Turkish jewellery exports to Russia had fallen due to political tensions between the two countries, Guner said.
Markets such as Russia and China were challenging for Turkish exporters due to high import duties, he added.
Turkish exporters were focusing on strengthening the biannual Istanbul jewellery shows in order to provide a more attractive showcase for their goods and to raise the numbers of visiting buyers from around the world.
They were exploring options to boost their presence in the UK market, and hoped to attract increasing numbers of UK retailers to the Istanbul shows.
“We are trying to attract more people (to the Istanbul show.) We need to make it bigger every year,” Guner said.
A wide selection of products were on display at the Istanbul Jewelry Show, ranging from fine gold and silver jewellery to pearl jewellery, gemstones, tools and machinery, and jewellery display and packaging materials.
