Newsletters
The International Carpet and Flooring Expo (ICFE 2026), billed as the world’s largest carpet fair, opened this week at the Istanbul Expo Center, bringing together 500 companies from 21 countries.
Organized by the Istanbul Carpet Exporters’ Association and the Southeastern Anatolia Carpet Exporters’ Association, the event is now in its third edition and continues to expand in scale and international reach.
The fair, taking place from Jan. 6 to Jan. 9, is open to industry professionals each day from morning until late afternoon.
Türkiye’s Trade Minister Omer Bolat inaugurated the fair and described it as a key platform for promoting Turkish carpet manufacturing on the global stage.
"This giant fair spans 11 exhibition halls and grows every year," Bolat said during the opening ceremony. Bolat emphasized that Türkiye is the world’s second-largest carpet producer and exporter, with the sector closing 2025 at nearly $3 billion in exports. He gave special recognition to producers from Gaziantep, calling it "a globally known and recognized city that exports carpets around the world."
He also highlighted the strength of Türkiye’s broader textile and apparel industries, which generated approximately $31 billion in export revenue for the year.
Minister Bolat highlighted that Türkiye’s total exports of goods and services reached $396.5 billion in 2025.
Of this figure, $273.4 billion came from goods exports, a new annual record, while services exports topped $123 billion.
"Türkiye has now risen into the league of countries with nearly $400 billion in exports," Bolat stated.
He also noted that the country broke its monthly export record in December with $26.43 billion in shipments. The combined increase in goods and services exports amounted to $17.5 billion over the previous year, Bolat said, reaffirming the government's 2026 target of $410 billion in total exports.
He added that trade missions and attendance at international fairs will remain central to the country’s export growth strategy.
According to the calendar released by the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Türkiye (TOBB), a total of 289 fairs, including 96 international events, are scheduled across Türkiye next year, with Istanbul set to host the most at 155.
Set as preferred source
1 min read
1 min read
