Unicera on the starting blocks

Mar 28, 2007

28/03/07 - The nineteenth Unicera, the foremost Turkish ceramic tile and bathroom furnishing show, will be held from 4 to 8 April.

The event will as usual be held in the TÜYAP Beylikdüzü Fair and Convention Center in Istanbul and expects to further improve on last year's excellent results.
The Turkish show is attended by more than 100,000 visitors a year and hosts over 300 exhibitor companies.
The event attracts an ever greater number of foreign visitors, last year totalling more than 37,000 from over 51 countries.

The show is being held at a positive time for the Turkish ceramic tile industry. Figures published by the Turkish ceramic manufacturers' association suggest that 2006 may have brought a recovery in the losses in tile exports suffered in 2005.
In the first half of 2006, exported volumes increased by 5% over the corresponding period in 2005 to reach 49.1 million square metres.
Less positive were the results for average selling price (down from 4.34 to 4.10 dollars/sq.m and with a fall in almost all markets) and export value, which fell by 0.8%.

More specifically, the United States became the leading export market by volume, absorbing 6.3 million sq.m (20.2% up on the first half of 2005), but saw a sharp decline in value (-9.1%).
The UK fell to second place with 5.2 million sq.m (down 5.2% in volume and 8% by value), followed by France (up 36.7% in volume and up 17% in value), Canada (up 13.5% in volume but stable in value), Israel (down 16.2% in volume and 10.6% in value) and Germany (up 10.6% in volume and 8.3% in value).