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waste because of vast volumes no longer accepted by China.
Exports of waste from the 27 member states of the EU to non-EU countries have expanded by two thirds (+66%) since 2004, although they remained stable from 2018 to 2019, according to the data. Last year, EU exports of waste reached 31.0mn tonnes, with a value of €13.4bn.
After Turkey, the second largest destination for EU waste in 2019 was India. It received almost 2.9mn tonnes, followed by the UK (1.9mn tonnes), Switzerland (1.6mn tonnes) and Norway (1.5mn tonnes).
9.1.8 ​Other sector news
Turkey’s large ready-wear and textile industry has already lost billions of dollars in export revenues from customers cancelling orders in the face of the disruption caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic​, according to trading group IHKIB.
“Some companies have been left with a pile of goods worth hundreds of millions of dollars, which cannot be delivered to customers but are now kept in warehouses,” said Mustafa Gultepe, the head of IHKIB.
Gultepe said that IHKIB has sent letters to brands such H&M, Marks and Spencer, Inditex, Primark and Best Seller demanding payments for goods kept in warehouses.
The brands placed orders and local companies manufactured them but after the pandemic hit they did not want to accept the products and did not make any payments, Gultepe explained.
He predicted that the decline in the industry’s export revenues may accelerate to 70% to 80% in April and May from 27% in March.
“Orders worth billions of dollars have been cancelled since the pandemic hit Europe,” Gultepe reiterated.
The industry’s export revenue target for 2020 is $19bn.
The combined share of the EU and the UK in the sector’s exports is around 70%.
Gultepe also noted that the capacity utilisation rate across the industry had plunged to 30% from 85% some three months ago.
“There is no sign that things can improve in the next three months. We need state support,” he said.
Turkey’s white goods market contracted by 9% y/y in March​, according to data from business group TURKBESD.
In the month, some 504,000 units were sold on the local market. Exports also dropped 9% y/y, falling to 1.35mn units.
“The impact of the coronavirus outbreak will be felt much more strongly in April,” cautioned Can Dincer, head of TURKBESD.
52​ TURKEY Country Report​ May 2020 ​ ​www.intellinews.com