Türkiye’s foreign trade activity recorded modest increases in October 2025, with both exports and imports rising compared to the same month last year, according to provisional data released by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) in cooperation with the Ministry of Trade.

In October 2025, exports reached $23.94 billion, marking a 2.0% increase from October 2024, while imports rose 7.2% to $31.52 billion. The foreign trade deficit widened sharply by 27.6% to $7.58 billion. Exports coverage of imports declined to 76.0% from 79.8% a year earlier.

Excluding energy products and non-monetary gold, exports totaled $22.86 billion, up 3.8%, while imports were $23.87 billion, a 5.2% increase. The trade deficit in this category remained limited to $1.01 billion, with an import coverage rate of 95.8%.

Seasonally and calendar-adjusted data showed a 1.7% increase in exports and a 4.8% rise in imports compared with the previous month.

Over the first ten months of 2025, exports amounted to $224.47 billion, up 3.9%, and imports reached $299.15 billion, rising 6.1% compared with the same period in 2024. The cumulative foreign trade deficit increased 13.3% to $74.68 billion, while exports coverage of imports fell to 75.0% from 76.6% in the same period last year.

Manufacturing industries continued to dominate exports, accounting for 94.4% in October 2025 and 94.5% over January–October 2025. High-technology products represented 3.4% of manufacturing exports in October and 3.6% in the first ten months.

Imports were led by intermediate goods, comprising 68.3% of total imports in October, followed by capital goods at 16.0% and consumption goods at 15.5%. High-technology products accounted for 12.7% of manufacturing imports in October 2025.

Germany remained Türkiye’s largest export partner in October, with $2.00 billion in exports, followed by the United Kingdom ($1.42 billion), the United States ($1.41 billion), Iraq ($1.21 billion), and Italy ($1.15 billion). The top five partners accounted for 30.1% of total exports.

On the import side, China led with $3.98 billion, followed by Russia ($3.71 billion), Germany ($2.33 billion), Switzerland ($2.01 billion), and the United States ($1.83 billion), together accounting for 43.9% of total imports.

Under the special trade system, October exports were $22 billion, up 2.7%, and imports totaled $29.96 billion, a 9.5% increase. The foreign trade deficit reached $7.96 billion, up 34.4%, with exports covering 73.4% of imports.

For January–October 2025, special trade system data showed exports of $203.99 billion (+4.2%) and imports of $280.75 billion (+6.9%), leading to a foreign trade deficit of $76.76 billion (+14.9%) and an export coverage rate of 72.7%.

The data indicate that while Türkiye’s export sector continues to grow, the widening trade deficit remains a concern. Analysts note that sustained increases in imports, particularly energy and intermediate goods, are exerting pressure on the trade balance, highlighting the need for policies to enhance export competitiveness and diversify markets. (ILKHA)