Quake concerns hit ready-to-wear trade

The concerns over a much-anticipated earthquake in Istanbul have started to affect the metropolis' three prominent commercial districts in the ready-to-wear sector: Laleli, Osmanbey and Merter.

Orders by customers from abroad in these three provinces seem to be shifting to the Far East due to the risk of the possible earthquake in Istanbul, as these orders have decreased by 35 percent following the quake fears.

As orders from abroad to these districts slowly move toward the Far East due to the risk of the possible earthquake in Istanbul, these orders have decreased by 35 percent.

Gıyasettin Eyyüpkoca, president of the Laleli Industrialists' and Businesspeople's Association (LASIAD), pointed to the impact of the war and changing weather conditions due to climate change on orders in recent months and expressed the negative effects that could be experienced in competition.

Eyyüpkoca said that orders started to drop again after the earthquake disaster.

"Of course, it is important to raise awareness about the Istanbul earthquake, but this should be done without hurting the economy," he said.

"There is a fear among customers that 'I cannot order from you, you are expecting an earthquake, I might not get the orders we have placed.' They tend to send their orders to the Far East. This is not a sustainable situation."

Gürbüz Oruç, president of the Merter Industrialists and Businessmen Association (MESİAD), said the earthquake had not affected orders coming into the region but that it had had a negative impact on textile production.

"Incoming customers know that the earthquake zone is far from Istanbul. The problem is that the earthquake has affected our prices. Our customers are mainly from Morocco, Algeria, Libya,...