Attending the Istanbul Ready-to-Wear and Fashion Fair (Istanbul Fashion Connection-IFCO), Minister of Commerce Ömer Bolat declared on Wednesday that Türkiye secures the seventh global position and third in Europe regarding ready-to-wear exports.

In his address during the event, Bolat noted, "Surpassing $30 billion last year, we achieved $20.6 billion (TRY 630.35 billion) in ready-to-wear clothing exports and $12.3 billion in textiles exports."

The Istanbul Fashion Connection-IFCO, orchestrated by the Istanbul Apparel Exporters' Association (IHKIB) in collaboration with the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce (ITO) and supported by the Ministry of Trade, commenced on Wednesday and extends until Saturday.

Minister Bolat, speaking at the inauguration held at Istanbul Expo Center, Europe's largest ready-to-wear clothing fair, reflected on the one-year anniversary of devastating earthquakes. He emphasized that societal strength was once again evident through the solidarity demonstrated as a state and nation in the earthquake-affected region.

Highlighting the fifth edition of the fair, Bolat underscored that Istanbul has evolved into a "fashion center," positioning Türkiye as a hub for production, supply, logistics, trade, energy, and fairs.

He recalled that Türkiye's economy expanded by 4% in the first nine months of the previous year, pushing the national income to $1.07 trillion. Bolat emphasized the pivotal role of exports in achieving this milestone.

"Despite the decline in global exports and imports, Türkiye reached $256 billion in exports last year, marking a historical record. We express our gratitude to the exporting community for this accomplishment," he stated.

Minister Bolat highlighted that Türkiye's garment sector contributes around 13%-14% to the nation's total exports. He pointed out advantages such as proximity to target markets, a diverse product range with original designs, prominence as a significant cotton producer, and the ability to swiftly deliver products as key factors contributing to this success.

Stating the aim of exporting $267 billion of goods and $110 billion of services for this year, Bolat affirmed that the ready-to-wear apparel and textile sectors would play a significant role in reaching the export target with a surge in orders in the second half of the year.

Furthermore, he noted that the import of key countries within the European Union witnessed a decline of approximately 15%, but Türkiye managed to increase exports to its top trading partner.

"Despite the global downturn in exports and imports, our share of global merchandise exports has risen from 1.02% to 1.06%. We aim to reach 1.30% by 2028," he asserted.