Shrinking Foreign Trade Area

In our country, which ranks among the top four worldwide in the production of lift components and boasts a current account surplus in this sector, there are hundreds of manufacturers operating in this industry. In addition to holding a significant market share in complete system exports, particularly in the Middle East, our exports of components to all countries adhering to European Union (EU) standards are steadily increasing, as well.

However, sanctions imposed by the U.S. and the European Union following the Russia-Ukraine war, as well as restrictions on foreign trade between Israel and Türkiye, and challenges such as money transfer difficulties due to the internal policies of countries like Egypt and Algeria, are narrowing the room for maneuver for exporters in our country. For Turkish lift manufacturers who have made significant investments and want to maintain their sustainability, there is no choice but to find new markets to replace the ones they are losing. However, this will be easier said than done. For many years, particularly due to supply and demand factors, countries in the Middle East have predominantly imported price-focused products from Türkiye. For manufacturers catering to this demand, meeting the demand for high value-added products, particularly from the EU, will not be easy in the short term. I am of the opinion that 2024 will not be a bright year for these manufacturers.

In recent times, our country and the international arena have witnessed numerous significant events. Domestically, the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat’s (CTBUH) Europe 2024 Conference was held on April 18 at the Ziraat Towers in the Istanbul Finance Center. Additionally, the 46th Construction Fair – Turkeybuild Istanbul, organized by ICA Events, took place between April 17-20 at the TUYAP Fair and Congress Center. In the international arena, the second Lift Expo Kazakhstan was held in Almaty, Kazakhstan, at the beginning of April. The third Lift Expo Algeria fair took place in Algiers, the capital of Algeria. Additionally, the first Smart Lift Mobility World fair was organized in Bengaluru, India. You can read the news on all these events in this issue.

In this issue, we are pleased to present the second installment of our nostalgic article series compiled from the archives of Asansör Dünyası (Elevator World), the inaugural publication of the Turkish lift industry, titled “The First Four Years of Asansör Dünyası.”

In our May-June issue, we covered the topic of Maintenance and Modernization, which is far from the desired efficiency due to the company population in our country, unregistered competition and many other reasons, and has been the cause of many accidents. I would like to extend my gratitude to Mustafa Olcay, Mehmet Cömert, Süleyman Özcan, Cem Kapukaya, Guangchi Liang, Darren Batey and Jeffrey A. Massey for their invaluable contributions to this topic through their articles.

I would like to state that we welcome all members of the sector who would like to take part in our upcoming issues with valuable articles or project news. For details on topic headings and article submission deadlines for each issue of Elevator World Türkiye (EWT) magazine, you can refer to the EWT News Bulletins or the media plan available on our website.

We hope you enjoy reading this issue, which features an array of news and content from both domestic and international outlets.