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Top Turkish Trade Balances

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Istanbul, Turkey courtesy of Pixabay.com
Istanbul, Turkey
Gold, iron or steel scrap, mobile phones and coal were major factors behind Turkey’s highest trade deficits by product. Germany, Switzerland, Russia and China represent the trade partners with which Turkey incurred the highest negative trade balances.

Turkey’s total trade balance for all products equaled a -US$49.9 billion deficit in 2020, down -50% from the -$99.9 billion in red ink during 2013. Year over year, Turkey’s -$49.9 billion trade deficit for 2020 represents a -68.9% increase from its -$29.6 billion deficit one year earlier during 2019.

To put Turkey’s most recent -$49.9 billion trade deficit metric into perspective, the country’s total external debt encompassing both public and private red ink equaled -$435.1 billion at September 2020. Consequently, Turkey’s external debt is the equivalent of roughly 9 times its negative international trade balance.

Top Turkish Trade Balances by Product and Country

Product+

The following 10 major products generated a surplus subtotal of $22.2 billion for Turkey in its global trade during 2020. Metrics listed below highlight Turkey’s strongest competitive advantages over worldwide trading partners.

  1. Trucks: US$3.3 billion (Up 19.9% since 2013)
  2. Jewelry: $2.8 billion (Up 4.9%)
  3. Iron or non-alloy steel bars, rods: $2.5 billion (Down -46.8%)
  4. Women’s clothing (not knit or crochet): $2.3 billion (Up 26.7%)
  5. Woven carpets/textile floor coverings: $2.22 billion (Up 20.1%)
  6. T-shirts, vests (knit or crochet): $2.16 billion (Down -30.6%)
  7. Jerseys, pullovers (knit or crochet): $.86 billion (Up 42.1%)
  8. Cars: $1.7 billion (Reversing a -$2.3 billion deficit in 2013)
  9. Miscellaneous furniture: $1.62 billion (Up 70.7%)
  10. Refrigerators, freezers: $1.616 billion (Up 12.9%)

Exported Turkish goods that generated the greatest percentage improvements in surpluses since 2013 were: trucks (up 70.7%), jewelry (up 42.1%), iron or non-alloy steel bars and rods (up 26.7%), unknit and non-crocheted women’s clothing (up 20.1%), woven textile floor coverings including carpets (19.9%) then knitted or crocheted t-shirts and vests (up 12.9%).

Product-

The 10 major products below accumulated a deficit subtotal of -$49.1 billion for Turkey in international trade during 2020. Turkey has demonstrated the severest competitive disadvantages in the exports and imports of the following commodities.

  1. Gold (unwrought): -US$22.4 billion (Up 90.2% since 2013)
  2. Iron or steel scrap: -$6.1 billion (Down -17.8%)
  3. Phone system devices including smartphones: -$3.2 billion (Down -14%)
  4. Coal, solid fuels made from coal: -$2.7 billion (Up 202.3%)
  5. Miscellaneous aircraft, spacecraft (e.g. helicopters, launchers): -$2.65 billion (Up 50.8%)
  6. Propylene/olefin polymers: -$2.64 billion (Down -10.2%)
  7. Processed petroleum oils: -$2.63 billion (Down -72.2%)
  8. Computers, optical readers: -$2.4 billion (Down -6.7%)
  9. Wheat: -$2.3 billion (Up 89.7%)
  10. Aluminum (unwrought): -$2.1 billion (Down -0.3%)

Turkey’s red ink in global trade expanded at the fastest rate since 2013 for the following products: gold (up 202.3%), iron or steel scrap (up 90.2%), mobile phones (up 89.7%) then coal including solid fuels made from coal (up 50.8%).

Leading trade product categories driving deficit declines were raw aluminum via a -72.2% annual decline and wheat with a -17.8% drop.

Country+

In 2020, Turkey generated a surplus subtotal worth $28.2 billion with the following 10 trading partners.

  1. Iraq: US$6.5 billion (Down -39.5% since 2012)
  2. United Kingdom: $5.4 billion (Up 77.3%)
  3. Spain: $3.5 billion (Reversing a -$2.3 billion deficit)
  4. Israel: $2.6 billion (Up 325%)
  5. Netherlands: $2.4 billion (Reversing a -$416.2 million deficit)
  6. Egypt: $1.8 billion (Down -21.7%)
  7. Morocco: $1.7 billion (Up 190.6%)
  8. Libya: $1.5 billion (Down -13.8%)
  9. Slovenia: $1.45 billion (Up 515%)
  10. Romania: $1.4 billion (Reversing a -$741 million deficit)

Based on percentage growth, surpluses at the expense of the following trade partners grew at the fastest pace from 2012 to 2020: Slovenia (up 515%), Israel (up 325%), Morocco (up 190.6%) and the United Kingdom (up 77.3%).

Country-

Turkey experienced a losing international trade relationship with some countries. All told, the following 10 trade partners created a -$58.9 billion deficit subtotal in 2020 from exchanging exports and imports.

  1. Russia: -US$18.5 billion (Down -7.1% since 2012)
  2. China: -$15.8 billion (Down -14.4%)
  3. India: -$5.5 billion (Up 9.4%)
  4. South Korea: -$4.7 billion (Down -7.9%)
  5. Japan: -$3 billion (Down -7.6%)
  6. United States: -$2.97 billion (Down -65.2%)
  7. Germany: -$2.6 billion (Down -68.9%)
  8. Switzerland: -$2.3 billion (Up 4%)
  9. Brazil: -$2 billion (Up 158.1%)
  10. Malaysia: -$1.5 billion (Up 36.1%)

Turkey’s negative net exports with Brazil grew by 158.1% trailed by a 36.1% deficit expansion with Malaysia and a 9.4% increase for India from 2012 to 2020.

Notable shrinkages in Turkey’s per-country deficits were with Germany (down -68.9%), the United States (down -65.2%) and China (down -14.4%).




 

See also Turkey’s Top 10 Imports

and Turkey’s Top Trading Partners

Research Sources:
CEIC Data, External Debt (for specified countries). Accessed on February 17, 2021

International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database (GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity). Accessed on February 17, 2021

International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on February 17, 2021

Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on February 17, 2021

Richest Country Reports, Key Statistics Powering Global Wealth. Accessed on February 17, 2021