An examination of import dependency of export: An application on the automotive sector

In the 1980s in parallel with the increasing trend towards globalization in the world economy, Turkey has also adopted the open economic policy with liberal policies. Thus, with the industrialization model based on foreign investment has accelerated Turkey's exports to policies aimed at pulling the country. In this context, a large number of foreign-owned companies were established in Turkey in various sectors. Most of these investments have been made in the automotive sector. Therefore, the automotive industry has been the leading sector in terms of Turkey's exports. Besides, after Turkey's imports in 2000 near the entry to an export-led growth has seen a significant increase. Due to these developments, if there is a dependency of export on import and if there is dependency then what are the main reasons of this dependency become an important issue to be investigated. Besides, the automotive industry in recent years, winning strategic importance for Turkey's economy has been one of the sectors that provide high value added. As a result, it has become one of the sectors dependent on imports (intermediate goods) depending on technological developments. This is due to the rapid development of technology and the fact that these inputs are imported from the countries where the parent company is located in order to minimize costs as a result of increased competition. As a result, input import and foreign dependency have increased in the automotive sector. In this context, it is important to measure the dependence of export on import in the automotive sector, which is the leading export sector in the Turkish economy. The dependence of exports on imports in the automotive sector will be analyzed using the econometric method for the years 1992-2019. With this study, the situation of the automotive sector will be observed and the import dependency in export rates will be revealed, and suggestions will be presented on what to do in order to reduce the dependence of the sector on imports. Keywords: Foreign Trade, Export, Import, The Automotive Sector, Foreign Dependency, Cointegration, ARDL