Turkey posted a trade deficit of US$5.75 billion in October, a further narrowing that suggests the economy’s rebalancing remains on track. The decline in imports was the slowest over the past six months, reflecting the relative strength of the Turkish lira.
Exports last month rose 3.6% from a year earlier to US$23.6 billion while imports dropped 0.2% to US$29.4 billion, data published on Saturday by the Trade Ministry showed.
The figures took the 10-month trade shortfall to US$65.6 billion, down more than 30% from the same period a year earlier. Ten-month exports were US$216.4 billion compared to the government’s full-year estimate of US$264 billion.
Turkey’s top export destination was Germany in October, at US$1.81 billion. China was the top exporter to Turkey, at US$4.24 billion, followed by Russia with US$3.06 billion.
Inflation data for October will be published on Monday.
