UPDATE - Turkey's foreign trade gap at $4.1B in May

UPDATES WITH MORE FIGURES, REVISED DECK

By Tuba Sahin

ANKARA (AA) – Turkey’s foreign trade deficit stood at $4.1 billion in May, the country’s statistical authority said on Wednesday.

The gap expanded 20.2% from the corresponding month last year, TurkStat said in a statement.

Turkey’s exports surged 65.7% year-on-year to hit $16.5 billion in May, while imports jumped 54% to reach $20.6 billion.

The exports-to-imports coverage ratio rose to 80% last month, versus 74.3% in May 2020.

This May, the country's main trading partner Germany received $1.4 billion worth of Turkish exports, or a 9% share of total exports.

It was followed by the US with $1.2 billion, the UK with $1.1 billion and Italy with $834 million, TurkStat said.

On the other side of the ledger, the top country for Turkey's imports last month was China with $2.63 billion, followed by Russia with $2.62 billion, Germany with $1.8 billion, and the US with $951 million.

In January-May, Turkey's foreign trade deficit narrowed by 13% on an annual basis to $18.3 billion.

The country's exports stood at $85.2 billion, up by 38.3%, while imports totaled $103.5 billion, rising 25.3% during the five-month period.