The Turkish textile and apparel sector continues to face challenging times due to declining competitiveness, exchange rate fluctuations, and rising costs in raw materials, energy, and labor. The decreases in employment numbers and production capacity have begun to more directly impact export figures.
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During the January–October 2024 period, the textile and apparel sectors achieved exports worth 22.7 billion dollars, whereas the same period in 2025 saw a decline to 21.8 billion dollars, marking a 4% drop. In the same period, exports of textiles and raw materials showed a 0.4% increase compared to the previous year, while apparel and garment exports recorded a 7.4% decline.
Türkiye’s overall exports, which were 216.1 billion dollars in the previous period, rose to 224.6 billion dollars, with the share of textile and apparel sectors in total exports at 9.7%.
In November of last year, the production capacity of the textile sector was 72.2%, which fell to 68.5% in October 2025. The production capacity of the apparel sector in October was reported at 74.2%.
Exports to Africa and Middle East continue to rise
During January–October 2025, European Union (EU) countries remained Türkiye’s main textile export market with a 41% share, though this represented a 0.7% decrease compared to the previous period. Exports to EU countries during the same period last year were valued at 3.929 billion dollars, while this year the figure was recorded at 3.901 billion dollars.
In African countries, the sector’s second-largest export market with a 13.5% share, a 15.7% increase was recorded compared to the same period last year. Türkiye exported textiles worth 1.284 billion dollars to African countries during this nine-month period.
Exports to former Eastern Bloc countries, ranking third in value with a 12.2% share and fifth in volume with a 9.6% share, declined during this period. Exports to these countries were valued at 1.163 billion dollars, marking a 12% decrease in value.
During this period, Türkiye’s top five textile export destinations were Italy, the USA, Germany, Spain, and Egypt. The highest value increase was recorded in Egypt at 27.1%, while the largest decline was seen in Russia at 19.7%.
Technical textiles lead exports with 4.5% growth
By product group, technical textiles ranked first with a 4.5% increase compared to the previous period. The top five countries for Türkiye’s technical textile exports were the USA, Germany, Italy, the UK, and Spain.
The second-ranking woven fabric exports maintained their course during January–October 2025 with a slight 0.02% increase. The main destinations for woven fabric exports during this period were Spain, Morocco, Egypt, Italy, and Tunisia.
Yarn exports, ranking third, increased by 1.6% in the same period. Türkiye’s top five yarn export destinations were Italy, Egypt, Portugal, the UK, and the USA.
The highest increase was recorded in the fiber product group at 6.5%, while the largest decline was in knitted fabrics at 9.1%.
In the apparel sector, knitted products ranked first in January–October 2025 with a 53% share and 7.395 billion dollars in exports. They were followed by woven products with 4.860 billion dollars and a 35% share, and ready-made garments with 1.662 billion dollars and a 12% share.