Turkey’s trade deficit widened to USD 11.3 billion in March 2026, up from USD 7.2 billion in the same month a year earlier, according to data from the Trade Ministry. This was the largest trade gap since April of the previous year, reflecting an 8.4% year-on-year increase in imports to USD 33.2 billion. The rise in imports was driven by higher purchases of investment goods (+7.9%), raw materials (+11.5%), and other goods (+249.5%).
China was Turkey’s leading import partner, accounting for 14.3% of total imports, followed by Germany (7.7%), Russia (6.1%), Switzerland (4.9%), and the United States (4.6%).
In contrast, exports fell 6.4% to USD 21.9 billion, pressured by weaker sales of investment goods (-2.7%), raw materials (-2.6%), and consumer goods (-15.3%). The main export destinations were Germany (8.3% of total exports), the United States (6.3%), Italy (5.9%), the United Kingdom (5.3%), and France (4.5%).
Over the first quarter of 2026, the trade deficit widened to USD 28.7 billion from USD 22.5 billion a year earlier, as imports increased by 4.7% while exports declined by 3.1%.
