Increased imports increase unemployment

Because the dollar has not risen as much as inflation, the tremors on the production side continue. While manufacturers are unable to offer competitive prices on exports due to rising costs, they are also faced with rising imports. Adnan Aslan, president of the Association of Steel Exporters, said that steel imports, especially from Russia, increased and this affected producers.

Explaining that steel imports are paving the way under the pretense that inflation will decrease, Aslan pointed out that if imports continue, investments in the sector will stop, even factories will close and thus unemployment will rise.

THEY ESTABLISHED THE EMBARGO

Noting that energy prices have also increased their costs considerably, Aslan said: “There was a 25 per cent decline in exports in January. We are currently maintaining employment. But in the future, this creates a risk due to unfair competition. Since the Russian steel industry has lost the opportunity to export to many markets where they are embargoed, it has started to sell its products to our country at lower prices. This situation also changed the balances in our domestic market. Apart from this, countries like China, India and Iran continued to sell to our country at dumped prices. As representatives of the Turkish steel industry, we want the necessary measures to be taken to prevent dumped imports.”

Stating that other sectors could not increase their production and exports even though they were importing cheap steel, Aslan said: “If imports are reliable and there is no investment and production stops, the end will be bad.”

adnan aslan

Reduced ability to compete.

The steel industry closed 2022 with 19.6 million tons exported with a decrease of 17.7 percent in quantity, and 21.1 billion dollars with a decrease of 5.3 percent in value. Saying that they are hopeful for the second half of 2023 if the necessary measures are taken, Adnan Aslan stated that they expect support in terms of financing and energy. Stating that they use the most expensive electricity compared to their competitors in Europe, Aslan said: “The opportunity to compete with other big exporters in the global market is gradually diminishing.”