Trade Minister Ömer Bolat: Recovery has begun in textile and ready-to-wear sectors
Trade Minister Ömer Bolat announced that the decline in exports and employment in the textile and ready-to-wear sectors has ended and a recovery process has begun as of 2026.
Trade Minister Ömer Bolat stated that the export and employment losses experienced in the textile and ready-to-wear sectors in 2023, 2024, and 2025 have stopped, announcing that a recovery is observed in 2026.
Trade Minister Ömer Bolat stated that the regression in textiles and ready-to-wear in recent years has stopped, saying, "An increase has begun in textiles in 2026, and ready-to-wear has a performance close to even. There was also no employment loss."
The statement was made at the opening of the İHKİB Innovation and Design Center, which brings together the activities of the Istanbul Ready-Made Garment and Apparel Exporters' Association (İHKİB) under a single roof. Trade Minister Ömer Bolat and Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır attended the opening of the center located in Bağcılar Mahmutbey.
Minister Bolat pointed out the importance of accredited laboratories, where the technical qualifications of products are certified, for exports, and said that the İHKİB Innovation and Design Center will also play a critical role in combating unsafe products. He noted that the center, supported by the Ministry of Trade, is not just a textile laboratory, but a valuable center covering many sectors such as chemistry, toys, and plastics.