Turkey’s foreign trade deficit drops sharply in August

ANKARA

CİHAN photo

Turkey’s foreign trade deficit declined by 39.8 percent in August to $4.89 billion compared to the same month of 2014, according to data produced by the Turkish Statistics Institute (TÜİK) in cooperation with the Customs and Trade Ministry on Sept. 30. 

Turkey’s exports dropped by 2.8 percent and imports by 18.2 percent to $11.07 billion and $15.95 billion, respectively, in August compared to the same month of 2014. 

The foreign trade gap decreased by 16.9 percent to $45.24 billion in the first eight months of the year compared to the same period of 2014, according to official data. 

As compared with the same month of the previous year, exports to the European Union decreased by 3.4 percent from $5.03 billion to $4.86 billion in August. The proportion of the EU countries was 44 percent in August 2015, while it was 44.3 percent in August 2014, according to official data. 

In August 2015, the main partner country for exports was Germany at $1.04 billion, followed by the United Kingdom at $825 million, Iraq at $720 million and the U.S. at $518 million. 

In August, the top country for Turkey’s imports was China at $1.96 billion, followed by Germany at 1.84 billion, Russia at $1.55 million and Italy at $828 million, according to the data. 

Turkey’s exports decreased largely due to fluctuations in parity and geopolitical risks, the Exporters’ Assembly of Turkey (TİM) announced Sept. 1. 

“Despite a slight recovery in recent weeks, euro-dollar parity regressed by 18.3 percent in the first eight months of the year compared to the same period of 2014. This regression cost our export [industry] $8.9 billion,” said TİM head Mehmet Büyükekşi in a Sept. 1 meeting.