AN ANALYSIS OF SEABORNE TRADE THROUGH ISKENDERUN BAY

Increasing trade volume and globalisation of supply chains have increased the importance of ports in international trade. Due to these developments, ports need to analyse the commodities in their hinterland to be able to meet their customer requirements. Iskenderun Bay, which is considered as a gateway to the Mediterranean Sea, has sufficient infrastructure to serve several commodity groups. The share of the total cargo handling of Iskenderun Bay is 9.34 % in Turkey. This study aims to analyze the frequency distributions of shipments, to determine the prominent cargo groups as well as exporting/importing regions of the ports located in Iskenderun Bay. The total amount of import-export cargoes and cargo groups have been analysed by the loading/discharging tonnages of the vessels, exporting/importing regions and the handling ports in Iskenderun. Calculation of the total amount of cargo on ton basis and shipment frequency has been found by using RStudio software to determine prominent cargo groups and main export/import regions. Assan Port, Yaz？c？ Port, Isdemir Port, MMK Metalurji Port, Orhan Ekinci Pier, Limak Port, Gübreta？ Port, Sasa Terminal, and Petrol Ofisi Pier Port have been selected for the analysis