External dependence of paper market in Turkey and the effect of raw material supply

The pulp and paper industry is one of the markets that has gained a new dinamism as a result of the development of internet and information processing in recent years. The industry faces significant changes due to current global volatility. As a matter of fact, a significant decrease in use of printing and writing paper and newsprint indicate this current situation. Thanks to the information age and as a result of the rapid shopping, there is a tendency towards packaging products. However, it is seen that the need for books and notebooks increases with the increasing educational potential in developing countries therefore the demand for paper from these countries is higher compared to developed countries. As Turkey is also one of the developing countries she is one of the markets that change its trend in terms of paper usage. She imports pulp in terms of her resources and tries to convert the raw material into final product that will create value added items. Pulp production requires a serious resource and is achieved at a level that cannot meet the needs in country. In the first part of the study, it is stated that the process of obtaining paper and board varies depending on the type of pulp produced by mentioning the inputs used in the production of pulp. The raw materials to produce paper are figured as pulp and waste paper. Then production, consumption and foreign trade data in the world were included by making the international definition of the paper industry. In the second part, it is seen that the external dependence of the sector in terms of raw material procurement is continuing, considering the historical development of the sector in our country. The costs incurred in paper industry in producing raw material and final product in Turkey is evaluated in terms of raw material, logistic and tax rates. The production capacity, capacity utilization rate, import and export data of our country were also analysed comparing the years 2017 and 2018. Then, in third chapter, the position of our country in the worldwide paper industry is examined. Five of the most important companies of the sector were selected and interwies were conducted within the scope of their experience and market knowledge. In the interviews, the current situation of the sector, structural problems and information on raw material supply in external dependence were evaluated and interpreted in the conclusion part. Key words: Paper Industry, Pulp, Waste Paper, Raw Material, External Dependence