Türkiye’s trade deficit narrows 15.6 percent in May

ISTANBUL

Türkiye’s foreign trade deficit narrowed 15.6 percent year-on-year in May, as imports fell more sharply than exports, official data showed on June 30.

The country’s exports totaled $22.46 billion in May, down 9.5 percent from the same month last year, while imports dropped 10.8 percent to $28.07 billion, according to provisional figures from the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) and the Trade Ministry.

The foreign trade gap fell to $5.61 billion in May from a year earlier.

The export-import coverage ratio rose to 80 percent in May, compared with 78.9 percent in the same month of 2025.

Excluding energy products and non-monetary gold, exports fell 11.5 percent to $20.5 billion, while imports dropped 16.2 percent to $21.03 billion. The trade deficit excluding these items stood at $525 million, while the coverage ratio was 97.5 percent.

In January-May, exports edged up 0.2 percent year-on-year to $111.12 billion, while imports rose 1.1 percent to $153.83 billion.

The foreign trade deficit rose 3.6 percent in the first five months of the year to $42.72 billion. The export-import coverage ratio fell to 72.2%, from 72.9% in the same period last year.

Germany was Türkiye’s top export destination in May, with shipments totaling $1.71 billion, followed by the U.S. with $1.52 billion, the U.K. with $1.38 billion, Italy with $1.14 billion, and Spain with $922 million.

Russia was the leading source of imports in May, with $3.76 billion, followed by China with $3.43 billion, Germany with $2.04 billion, the U.S. with $1.21 billion and Italy with $1.06 billion.

The share of high-technology products in manufacturing exports was 3.1 percent in May, while high-tech products accounted for 11.8 percent of manufacturing imports.