New carpet-making union formed
22nd December 2009
The Union of Carpet Exporters has been established in the province of Gaziantep and is expected to help establish the area as Turkey's leading carpet manufacturing centre, World Bulletin reports.
It was constituted after permission for the move was granted by minister for foreign trade, Zafer Caglayan.
This led to the announcement by Justice and Development party members Fatma Sahin, Mahmut Durdu, Mehmet Sari, Halil Mazicioglu, Ozlem Muftuoglu and Mahmut Erdogan that the new union had been formed.
The value of carpets exported from the Gaziantep region in 2008 was $795 million (£498 million), out of a total export of $1.1 billion from the country as a whole.
One Middle Eastern country that has reported a strong performance in its carpet export sector this year is Iran.
Iran Customs Union figures reported by the Mehr news agency this month showed that the first eight months of 2009 brought a seven per cent rise in the number of Persian hand-weaved carpets being made.
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