Turkey: Trade deficit surprised to the downside
Turkey: Trade deficit surprised to the downside At USD 5.5bn, October’s foreign trade deficit was lower than the market expectations (USD 8.2bn) and our forecast (USD 7.4bn) mostly due to lower-than-expected imports. October’s fiscal data was implying an increase in imports. Nevertheless, on a seasonally adjusted basis, imports contracted by 4.1% m/m in October. Exports increased by 0.7% m/m. As a result, 12-month cumulative trade deficit declined from USD 87.7bn in September to USD 85.2bn in October. Similarly, non-energy trade deficit contracted by USD 2.2bn to USD 33.2bn in October.