Turkish exporters' shipments reached a record high in July, maintaining an upward trend that has helped lower the country's foreign trade deficit.
Exports rose 13.8% from a year ago to $22.5 billion, Turkish Trade Minister Ömer Bolat said.
"We have achieved the highest July exports in history. We achieved a 13.8% increase compared to July last year, when the figure was $19.8 billion. Thus, we achieved an increase of $2.7 billion," Bolat said.
Imports dropped by 7.9% in July to $32.3 billion, the official data showed. Bolat said necessary and essential imports are still being made but said the government is combating purchases from abroad that could endanger Turkish industries, Anadolu reported.
These efforts helped narrow the foreign trade deficit by 42.3% year-over-year to $7.2 billion in July, Bolat said, stressing that the decline contributed positively to macroeconomic stability and economic growth.
Exports-imports coverage ratio came in at 75.7%, improving from 61.2% in July 2023.
From January through July, exports amounted to $148.8 billion, up 4.1% year-over-year, while imports fell by 8.4% to $198.6 billion.
