The Turkish furniture industry aims to boost its exports to $6 billion (TL 81.39 billion) in 2022, head of the Furniture Industry Businessmen Association (MOBSAD) Nuri Gürcan said, pointing out that the sector closed last year with exports worth $4.3 billion.

Sector exports leaped 26.4% in 2021 from 2020, easily beating the 2019 pre-pandemic level of $3.5 billion, Gürcan told Anadolu Agency (AA).

The price per kilogram in the sector's exports is around $3 and can go up to $10 for members of the industry group, he said, adding: "For value-added exports, raw materials should be presented to the furniture industry on the domestic market instead of being exported."

To help do this, the country should implement raw material export limits this year, which has been declared the "year of exports," Gürcan said.

COVID-19 restrictions benefited the furniture industry as well, with the sector entering markets that China lost due to the pandemic, he said.

There has been a sharp increase in demand for Turkish furniture, especially from European countries and the U.S., according to Gürcan. "The European and US markets are valuable because they offer us significant gains in exports per kilogram."

The export price to these markets can reach up to $6 per kilogram. "We want to increase our exports to the US market this year to $1 billion," he said.

Gürcan suggested that more organized industrial zones should be created and more intermediate staff should be trained to meet the sector’s targets.

While as of 2015 there were 400 firms making exports of more than $1 million, by 2021 this figure had more than doubled to 1,000, he said.

The Turkish furniture sector exports to 172 countries and 202 customs points, making it the world's sixth-largest furniture exporter, Gürcan said.

Istanbul Furniture Fair

Turkey's commercial and business hub is set to host the Istanbul Furniture Fair on Jan. 25-30.

Gürcan said the sector aims to achieve $2 billion in furniture exports during the event.

The fair, Europe's largest furniture event, skipped 2021 due to pandemic measures.

This year the fair will host more than 3,000 domestic and foreign brands from 50 countries, and major buyers from the U.S. and Canada, he said.

Like previous editions, this year MOBSAD will also showcase its expensive furniture at the fair.