According to the customs statistics provided by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK), in 2012 Turkey imported 7.8 million mt of iron ore, increasing 18 percent compared to 2011. The value of Turkey's iron ore imports in 2012 was $1.15 billion, down 1.8 percent compared to the previous year.
Last year, Turkey's iron ore imports from Brazil amounted to 4.58 million mt, up 28.7 percent compared to 2011, while Sweden exported 1.2 million mt of iron ore in 2012 to Turkey, decreasing 30.3 percent compared to the previous year.
In December last year, Turkey's iron ore imports increased significantly compared to the 348,172 mt recorded in the same month of 2011, amounting to 925,624 metric tons, more than triple compared to the previous month, following two consecutive months of strong month-on-month decreases.