Business · Trade · 15 hrs ago
Turkey’s textile and clothing sector shows signs of recovery in 2026
Turkey’s textile and clothing sector has begun to recover in 2026, Trade Minister Ömer Bolat said at the opening of a new center in Istanbul.
He said export declines from 2023 to 2025 had stopped, textile exports were rising and clothing exports were close to their previous level.
Bolat said the sector had no further employment losses, after earlier declines in jobs as well as exports.
The sector, including carpets and home textiles, employs about 860,000 people in Turkey.
The new İHKİB center brings testing, design, training and digital services together in a 14,000-square-metre site in Istanbul’s Bağcılar district.
Bolat said the center would serve exporters across several industries and help textile and clothing businesses improve the value of their products.
Turkey aims to build on its share of global textile and clothing trade, which Bolat put at about 3 percent; he said the new center would support that effort.
Turkey’s textile and clothing sector showed signs of recovery in 2026, after export and employment declines in 2023, 2024 and 2025 stopped.
Trade Minister Ömer Bolat said textile activity had begun to increase, while clothing was performing close to break-even and there had been no further employment losses.
The sector employs 860,000 people in Turkey, including carpet and home-textile workers, Bolat said.
A new 14,000-square-metre İHKİB Innovation and Design Centre opened in Istanbul to bring together work in textiles, clothing, fashion, education and digitalisation.
Bolat said companies had responded to weaker demand by focusing on design, branding and productivity.
- Who
- Turkey’s textile and clothing sector, discussed by Trade Minister Ömer Bolat.
- What
- The sector showed signs of recovery in 2026. An İHKİB innovation and design centre also opened.
- When
- The centre opened on 17 October 2026. Bolat described the sector’s performance during 2026.
- Where
- The centre is in Bağcılar Mahmutbey, Istanbul, Turkey.
- Why
- Bolat said firms turned to design, branding and productivity after weaker demand in important markets. The government also provided support.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Textile and clothing exports and employment declined, according to Bolat.
Bolat said textile activity began to increase, clothing performance was close to break-even, and there were no further employment losses.
The İHKİB Innovation and Design Centre opened in Bağcılar Mahmutbey, Istanbul.
- Sector employment
- 860,000 people, including carpet and home-textile workers
- Centre area
- 14,000 square metres
- Global clothing exports
- $626 billion
- Turkey’s share of global clothing trade
- 3%; eighth in the world, according to Bolat
- Turkey’s combined textile and clothing exports
- $31 billion, about 3% of the stated $900 billion global trade total
What people are saying
2026'da tekstilde artış başladı, hazır giyimde de başa başa yakın bir performans var. İstihdam kaybı da olmadı.
2026 her alanda olduğu gibi tekstil ve giyimde de toparlanma yılı oldu.
Tasarıma, markalaşmaya ve verimliliğe yöneldiler.
Bu zorlukları aşacağız, sektörel dönüşüm süreci yaşanıyor.