Foreign trade deficit shrinks 48 percent in May to $6.5 billion

ANKARA

Türkiye posted a foreign trade deficit of $6.5 billion in May, marking a significant 48 percent decline from the same month of last year, data from the Turkish Statistics Institute (TÜİK) have shown.

Exports, which fell 0.1 percent annually in the previous month, surged 11.3 percent from a year ago to stand at $24.07 billion.

The annualized exports hit an all-time high of $260 billion, while imports declined by $29 billion over the past year, Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek wrote on X, commenting on the latest trade figures.

Şimşek recalled that foreign tourist arrivals remained strong, rising 14 percent in May.

The annualized current account deficit is expected to improve by $6 billion in May compared to the previous month and decrease to around $26 billion, he said, adding that the current account deficit to GDP ratio is projected to be well below 2.5 percent as of the second quarter.

“The declining current account deficit will reduce the need for external financing, provide more permanent reserve accumulation, further strengthen financial stability, pave the way for continued credit rating increases and will play an important role in achieving our goals,” Şimşek said.

Imports plunged 10.4 percent year-on-year to 30.6 billion in May, according to TÜİK data released on June 28.

The export/import coverage ratios improved from 63.4 percent in May 2023 to 78.7 percent last month.

On a seasonally and calendar-adjusted basis, exports rose 9.6 percent from April, while the monthly decline in imports was 9.6 percent.

Germany was the largest market for Turkish exporters in May. Türkiye’s exporters to Europe’s powerhouse hit $1.9 billion.

The U.K. came second with $1.52 billion, followed by the U.S. with $1.48 billion and Iraq with $1.15 billion.

Italy was the fifth largest export market for Türkiye at $1.12 billion.

The European Union absorbed 42 percent — or $ 9.08 billion — of Türkiye’s exports in May, rising 8.9 percent from a year earlier.

Imports from China amounted to $3.86 billion, while Türkiye bought $3.78 billion worth of goods from Russia in May.

Consumer goods imports surged 19.6 percent year-on-year in May, to $4.9 billion. Intermediate goods and capital goods imports were down 16.5 percent and 5.5 percent to $21.1 billion and $4.5 billion, respectively.

In the first five months of 2024, Türkiye increased its exports by 4.5 percent from a year ago to $106.9 billion, while imports declined by 9.2 percent to $143.7 billion.

Consequently, the foreign trade deficit fell by 34.3 percent in January-May from the same period of last year to $36.8 billion.