Yavuz Işık
Chairman of the Board
Turkish Ready Mixed Concrete Association (THBB)
Ready-mixed concrete production in Türkiye began to expand widely from the second half of the 1980s onward. Since its establishment in 1988, our Association has been a sectoral organization dedicated to promoting the production and use of high-quality, accurate, environmentally responsible, and sustainable concrete required for the construction of safe and durable structures across the country.
Companies applying for membership are required to ensure that all their ready-mixed concrete plants operate in full compliance with relevant standards; to obtain the KGS Certificate of Conformity by being subject to continuous, unannounced inspections under the Turkish Ready-Mixed Concrete Association’s Quality Assurance System (KGS); to maintain appropriate laboratory facilities; and to fully comply with technical, environmental, occupational health and safety, legal, and ethical criteria.
Through the dozens of scientific congresses, exhibitions, and hundreds of technical seminars we organize; our KGS system which is one of the pioneers and the most successful example of sectoral self-regulation in Türkiye; our Construction Materials Laboratory, which now serves the entire world; and our Vocational Qualification Center and training programs that strengthen our industry’s human resources, we are raising the technological and scientific standards of our sector while significantly contributing to high-quality concrete production and, consequently, to the development of high-quality construction in our country.
In Türkiye, 26 facilities—comprising 9 cement production plants, 12 concrete production plants and 5 aggregate production facilities—are currently operating with CSC certification.
We are European Leader in Ready-Mixed Concrete Production
With a production volume of 130 million cubic meters in 2024, Türkiye ranks as the largest producer of ready-mixed concrete in Europe. According to 2024 data from the European Ready Mixed Concrete Organization (ERMCO), Türkiye alone produced 130 million cubic meters annually, while Germany, the second-largest producer, recorded a production volume of 36.8 million cubic meters. The total production of all EU countries amounted to 235.1 million cubic meters. These figures demonstrate that Türkiye accounts for more than half of Europe’s total ready-mixed concrete production on its own. With an annual turnover of approximately TRY 200 billion and direct employment of around 45,000 people, the ready-mixed concrete sector holds a critical position within Türkiye’s economy and construction industry.
Shaping the Sector Through Sustainability-Focused Initiatives
By representing our country on all national and international platforms, we continue to closely monitor developments affecting our sector and to contribute to policy formation through our active membership in the European Ready Mixed Concrete Organization (ERMCO). As THBB, we have also become a member of the Switzerland-based Concrete Sustainability Council (CSC), thereby introducing the world’s highest-level sustainability certification model for the concrete sector to Türkiye.
As of 2025, a total of 1,514 facilities worldwide hold active CSC certificates. In Türkiye, 26 facilities—comprising 9 cement production plants, 12 concrete production plants and 5 aggregate production facilities—are currently operating with CSC certification.
Pioneering Another Milestone with Our Triple Transformation Project
In 2025, we launched our Triple Transformation Project, bringing together green transformation, digital transformation and human/cultural transformation under a single integrated framework. This logistics-oriented triple transformation approach stands out for both its ease of implementation and its significant contribution to operational efficiency. When companies operating in the ready-mixed concrete, cement and aggregate sectors adopt this project, they achieve substantial gains in energy and cost savings, productivity improvements, digital traceability and sustainability performance.
According to TurkStat data, housing sales in December increased by 19.8% year-on-year to 254,777 units. In 2025, total housing sales rose by 14.3% compared to the previous year, reaching 1,688,910 units—marking a historical peak.
2025 Assessment and Outlook for 2026
The Construction Confidence Index results published by TurkStat for December provide important insights into the construction sector. In December 2025, the Construction Confidence Index declined slightly to 84.5 (from 84.9 in the previous month), remaining below the threshold of optimism and indicating a continued low level of confidence toward year-end. During the same period, the Economic Confidence Index stood at 99.5, while confidence levels in the services and retail trade sectors reached 112.3 and 115.4, respectively—significantly higher than in construction. Once again, construction recorded the lowest confidence level among all sectors.
The notable decline in consumer loan interest rates observed in December had not yet been reflected in the construction sector. Nevertheless, urban transformation projects and infrastructure investments carried out by the public sector have contributed to maintaining a limited positive trend in the activity index. However, the anticipated implementation of new public measures in the housing market starting in 2026, together with expectations of rising housing prices in 2026, appear to have driven housing sales upward in December 2025.
According to TurkStat data, housing sales in December increased by 19.8% year-on-year to 254,777 units. In 2025, total housing sales rose by 14.3% compared to the previous year, reaching 1,688,910 units—marking a historical peak. Prior to 2025, the highest annual sales figure was recorded in 2020 with 1.499 million units.
Mortgage-backed housing sales nationwide increased by 25.2% year-on-year in December to 29,149 units. For the full year 2025, mortgage-backed sales rose by 49.3% to 236,668 units. The share of mortgage-backed sales in total housing sales stood at 11.4% in December and 14.0% for 2025 overall.
First-hand housing sales, which serve as a key indicator of sectoral momentum, increased by 26.2% year-on-year in December to 96,690 units in Türkiye. In 2025, first-hand sales rose by 11.6% to 540,786 units, accounting for 38.0% of total sales in December and 32.0% throughout the year.
The data indicate that, despite overall demand remaining relatively resilient, the pace of growth has slowed, with tight interest rates and restrictive credit access conditions keeping the issue of “affordability” at the forefront. This is reflected in the share of mortgage-backed housing sales within total sales, which remained at 14% for the full year of 2025. Although strong increases were observed in mortgage-backed sales over the course of the year, high interest rates and the burden of down payments have concentrated housing demand primarily among upper-middle income groups and institutional investors. As access to financing has not yet become widespread across the broader market, the share of mortgage-backed sales within total transactions continues to remain limited.
When examining the data for the year as a whole, the overall picture shows that by the end of 2025 the construction sector remained relatively resilient on the production side, while fragility persisted in terms of confidence and expectations.
An analysis of macroeconomic indicators in December shows that, as of December 2025, annual CPI inflation declined to 30.89%, marking a decrease of approximately 0.89% compared to the previous month. The slowdown in inflation has been driven not only by tight monetary policy, relative stability in exchange rates, and the rebalancing of domestic demand, but also by base effects and a global easing in the prices of certain key commodities.
While housing-related expenditures made the largest contribution to inflation in December, food and transportation followed. The annual increase in producer prices remained at 27.57%, signalling a narrowing gap between consumer and producer inflation and a relative easing of cost pressures.
The Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye (CBRT) revised its tight monetary stance with a partial easing at its final meeting of 2025, cutting the policy rate from 39.5% to 38%. Despite improvements in inflation expectations, the Bank emphasized that risks remain and that a tight policy stance will be maintained until price stability is firmly achieved.
Despite gradual interest rate cuts over the course of the year, the fact that real interest rates remain in positive territory is considered critical for both the fight against inflation and the dynamics of capital flows. Tight monetary conditions continued to restrain credit growth, cooling domestic demand in a controlled manner while maintaining financing cost pressures, particularly for SMEs and the construction sector.
In 2025, with the rebalancing of domestic demand and the normalization of gold and energy imports, the current account deficit-to-GDP ratio declined gradually. Despite fluctuations in European demand, exports have continued to support the economy, driven by the strong performance of service revenues, particularly tourism.
Türkiye’s five-year CDS premium fell to 204 basis points by the end of 2025, reaching its lowest level since May 2018. This decline was driven by disciplined anti-inflation policies, record-high Central Bank of Turkish Republic reserves and uninterrupted economic growth for 21 consecutive quarters.
While improved CDS levels and reserve positions have eased external financing conditions, geopolitical risks and the global interest rate outlook remain key vulnerabilities.
Globally, U.S. Federal Reserve policies dominated discussions in 2025. The Fed entered 2025 with a policy rate in the range of 4.25–4.50% and concluded the year in the 3.50–3.75% band after implementing three 25-basis-point cuts at its September, October, and December meetings. Thus, following the sharp tightening cycle of 2022–2023, a downward trajectory in interest rates after the peak was confirmed for the second consecutive year.
The Fed’s monetary policy in 2025 evolved along a path that can be characterized as “cautious easing,” focusing on preserving the framework for fighting inflation while gradually softening financial conditions through measured interest rate cuts and balance sheet actions toward year-end. With a total reduction of 75 basis points across three meetings, the policy rate was lowered to the 3.50–3.75% range by the end of the year, while policy statements and projections point to an intention to continue a slow but ongoing normalization process over the 2026–2027 period.
Developments in early 2026 in the U.S. have also attracted attention. The U.S. Department of Justice’s criminal investigation into Fed Chair Jerome Powell—officially linked to his June 2025 congressional testimony regarding the Fed building renovation—has been widely interpreted as a political move aimed at pressuring the Fed over rate cuts under the Trump administration. Powell described the investigation as an attempt to undermine the Fed’s independence, reaffirming that policy decisions would remain data-driven—a stance that reinforced the Fed’s decision to keep rates unchanged as of January 2026.
Turning to Türkiye’s growth performance, the economy expanded by 3.7% in the third quarter of 2025, while the construction sector grew by 13.9% year-on-year based on the chain-linked volume index, making the strongest contribution to overall growth. The sector maintained its growth trend for the 12th consecutive quarter, supported by post-earthquake reconstruction, accelerated urban transformation and infrastructure investments, positioning construction as one of the key drivers of economic activity.
This performance indicates a strong recovery from low base levels following a prolonged contraction in the sector, with industry representatives attributing the momentum in the third quarter to both public investments and the increase in private housing production.
Türkiye entered 2026 with a 100-basis-point policy rate cut by the Central Bank. Although this reduction fell somewhat short of expectations, it followed a trajectory broadly in line with prevailing developments. Accordingly, in 2026, with thegradual decline in inflation and the anticipated controlled easing in monetary policy starting from 2026, we expect a new wave of recovery in both housing demand and supply; however, whether this will amount to a “golden year for housing” remains to be seen. The reconstruction of earthquake-affected regions, accelerating urban transformation in major cities, infrastructure and transportation investments, and growing demand for green and energy-efficient buildings present a strong medium-term business potential for the construction sector.
Nevertheless, the pace at which lower interest rates are achieved, the real income growth of households, and the impact of macroprudential measures on housing loans will remain the key risk factors shaping the sector’s trajectory.
