Turkey’s textile sector loses 500,000 jobs as proposal rejected

Yeni Parti MP Şeref Arpacı warned that Turkey’s textile and ready‑garment sector has lost more than 500,000 jobs and about 10,000 firms have closed. He said the sector’s export value fell from $21 billion to $16 billion and its global market share dropped below 3 percent, while roughly 35 % of the industry has eroded.

Arpacı presented a parliamentary research proposal to investigate the crisis, but the motion was rejected by MPs from the ruling AKP and the nationalist MHP. He criticized the 12.5 % additional export tax imposed by the United States on Turkish textile products and noted the lack of any response from the U.S. Trade Representative.

The rejection leaves the sector without an immediate parliamentary inquiry, heightening concerns over employment and competitiveness in Turkey’s once‑robust textile industry.