Having noticed an important decline in ready-made apparel exports to the US market (-19,1% since the beginning of 2007), the ITKIB made a survey on commercial relations with the US in the textile and apparel sector. The ready-made apparel market which used to represent 1,52 billion dollars in 2004 now only weighs about 625 million dollars. Trying to face Asian firms which benefit from this situation (in particular China, India, Indonesia and Vietnam), some Turkish businesses take opportunities in neighbour countries. For instance, Şahinler apparel group has set up its factories in Jordan and Egypt to benefit from tax reductions thanks to special agreements between the US and high tech industrial zones in those countries.

Source: Turkish Daily News Nov. 28th 2007