TURKISH MARITIME SECTOR EYES BETTER, 2011

Turkey's maritime sector is advancing with 2011 expected to be a better year, according to Economic Review, which quoted a sector representative on Wednesday.

'The total revenue of global maritime commerce is nearly $400bn,' said Geza Dologh, chief of the ?zmir Chamber of Shipping. 'Turkey, as a country of seas, has to take a bigger share of this big pie. Next year will be better for the sector.'

The country has increased one step in the size of its merchant marine fleet, climbing to the 16th spot in the world, Dologh told Anatolia news agency.

The size of the global merchant marine fleet reached 1.23 billion in deadweight tonnage, or DWT, while global maritime trade volume reached 8.17 billion tonnes, according to recent figures.