SMM calls off Istanbul event

Tense political situation and market downturn lead to cancellation of February conference.

13 January 2016 9:54 GMT Updated 13 January 2016 9:54 GMT

The SMM shipping conference and exhibition planned for Istanbul next month has been cancelled a day after 10 people were killed in a bomb blast.

ISIS claimed responsibility for the explosion in the centre of the city.

The German group behind SMM, Hamburg Messe, said the “tense political situation in the region and the changing Turkish shipbuilding market have created a sense of uncertainty among international exhibitors, leading to a general reluctance to register for the SMM Istanbul conference and exhibition.”