Free zones exports reached 9.8 billion dollars in 9 months

According to the statement made by the Ministry of Trade, Turkey's free zones exports in the January-September period rose by 6.3 percent annually to 9.8 billion dollars, while in September they were realized as 1.15 billion dollars with an increase of 14.8 percent.

According to the data announced by the Ministry of Trade, the ratio of exports to imports in free zones was 165.5 percent in September and 159.7 percent in the nine-month period. While a total of 19 free zones were in a net exporter position, the share of exports in total sales made from free zones in the January-September period was realized as 76.1 percent. In addition, during this period, the share of medium-high and high-technology products in total exports reached 58.4 percent.

A total of 1,930 user companies, 466 of which are foreign, operated in these regions, and these companies provided direct employment to 88,007 people. Out of 2,788 operation licenses granted, 2,102 were given to domestic and 686 to foreign users, and the share of production-related operation licenses rose to 44.6 percent.

The Aegean Free Zone increased its exports by 159.2 million dollars compared to the same period of last year, reaching 2 billion 542 million dollars and single-handedly generating 25.8 percent of total exports. While the Bursa Free Zone increased its exports by 30.7 percent to 1 billion 563 million dollars, the Adana-Yumurtalık Free Zone carried its exports up by 23.4 percent to 425 million dollars; an export increase of 10 percent and above was recorded in the Adana-Yumurtalık, West Anatolia, Bursa, and Trabzon free zones.