Consolidated exports by the machinery manufacturing industry, including free zones, totaled $16.5 billion in the first seven months of the year. Despite a decline in volume, a 9% increase in export unit prices lifted the total value of exports by 1.7% compared with the same period last year.
Germany and the United States lead the rankings
Germany ranked first in machinery exports. Exports to the country rose 8.4% to nearly $2 billion.
Machinery exports to the United States increased 28.9% to $1.4 billion. Exports to the Syrian market also rose 51.4% during the same period, approaching $95 million.
Expectations of reconstruction in the Syrian market
Sevda Kayhan Yılmaz, chair of the Machinery Exporters’ Association, said the reconstruction process in Syria and efforts to rebuild its civilian industrial infrastructure were increasing the market’s commercial potential.
Yılmaz said Syria imported an average of $1.5 billion worth of machinery annually before the civil war, while the prolonged conflict disrupted industrial investments. She said that as Syria entered a recovery process in 2025, its total machinery imports doubled from the previous year to reach $378 million.
According to data cited by Yılmaz, Türkiye’s machinery industry increased its exports to Syria by 174.6% in 2025 compared with the previous year, raising them to $148 million. It overtook China to rank first in the market. Demand increased across various industrial sectors, particularly for metal, plastics, food and textile machinery.
Call for changes to Eximbank classification
Yılmaz said financing instruments needed to be strengthened to enable Türkiye’s machinery industry to maintain its position in the Syrian market. She said the revival of trade corridors between Türkiye and Syria and the medium-term prospect of $10 billion in bilateral trade were creating favorable conditions for exports.
Yılmaz said Syria’s placement in the seventh category, the highest-risk group in Turkish Eximbank’s risk classification, subjected exporters to high premium rates. She said the closure of the buyer-credit mechanism gave European competitors a financing advantage, particularly.
Yılmaz called for Syria to be removed from the category of high-risk countries, for greater flexibility in export credit insurance and for the creation of Eximbank support programs tailored to the market. She said these steps would reduce exporters’ risk-premium burden and strengthen Türkiye’s competitiveness in the market.
Customs duties and payment channels on the agenda
Discussions with exporting companies highlighted the tenfold increase in duties collected per ton at Syrian customs and the application of the same tariff to Turkish products as to goods from East Asia. Duties based on weight and value for large and heavy machinery were also increasing costs.
Because direct banking channels are not functioning, foreign-currency transfers must be made through exchange offices, making it more difficult for exporters to benefit from conversion support. Yılmaz said the relevant ministries were gradually working to resolve these problems.
Preparations for the Damascus International Fair
The Machinery Exporters’ Association will organize Türkiye’s national participation at the 63rd Damascus International Fair, which will be held at the end of August. Yılmaz said they would explain to Syrian companies the benefits that commercial cooperation between Türkiye and Syria could provide at the fair.
