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Turkey’s foreign trade gap widening: Imports of consumer goods exceeded that of capital goods

CONSUMPTION

Ministry of Trade announced Turkey’s foreign trade figures for April. The fact that imports of consumer goods exceeded imports of capital goods in the monthly import categories is noteworthy in the context of the inflation reduction program.

This trend may signal a higher domestic demand for finished goods, which can sustain inflationary pressures, rather than a focus on productive investments that enhance supply capacity and medium-term disinflation. Would you like help formulating this insight in a formal report or policy note format?

In April 2025 compared to the same month of the previous year;

– Exports increased by 8.5% to 20 billion 924 million dollars,
– Imports increased by 12.9% to 32 billion 961 million dollars,
– Foreign trade volume increased by 11.2% to 53 billion 885 million dollars.

2025 January-April period compared to the same period of the previous year;

– Exports increased by 3.9% to 86 billion 247 million dollars,
– Imports increased by 6.7% to 120 billion 773 million dollars,
– Foreign trade volume increased by 5.5% to 207 billion 19 million dollars.

In April 2025, compared to the same month of the previous year:

  • The export-to-import coverage ratio decreased by 2.6 percentage points to 63.5%.
  • When excluding energy data, the coverage ratio fell by 3.5 percentage points to 70.4%.
  • When excluding both energy and gold data, the coverage ratio declined by 1.1 percentage points to 76.2%.

In April, according to the Broad Economic Categories (BEC) classification:

  • The highest export was in the “Intermediate Goods” category, totaling 10.874 billion USD, with an increase of 7.8%.
  • This was followed by “Consumer Goods”, with 6.951 billion USD (up 5.0%), and
  • “Capital Goods”, with 2.865 billion USD (up 15.7%).

In April, according to the Broad Economic Categories (BEC) classification:

  • The highest import was in the “Intermediate Goods” category, totaling 22.905 billion USD, with an increase of 12.9%.
  • This was followed by “Consumer Goods”, with 5.364 billion USD (up 10.4%), and
  • “Capital Goods”, with 4.585 billion USD (up 14.2%).

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