Turkish Hazelnut Market Update
The overall assumption is the local market in Turkey remains firm. TMO and 'private' markets are both willing to buy and are absorbing the available volumes. Italy is a very active buyer at present due to their own crop being short. This further increases the demand for Turkish material. Considering the above, the Turkish hazelnut industry is very much on the path to sell this large crop at the current price levels.
The current situation at the Syrian border did raise some concerns in Europe with regards to the hazelnut supply in the coming period. For the major players, this did not come as a surprise and the circumstances were well prepared for. The political division in Brussels and the complexity of the situation. Along with a strong position of Turkey, allow for opinions to be drawn that there is to be no expected direct impact on hazelnut trade between Turkey and Europe. The lira did see a period of weakening last week, however seems to be under control for now.