TGDF Data Released: Exports Reach USD 12.2 Billion

Turkish Statistical Institute announced Foreign Trade Data, and according to the TGDF Digital Data Panel prepared by Agrimetre, in the first 6 months of 2022, the agriculture, food and beverage sector achieved USD 12.2 billion in exports and USD 10.4 billion in imports. According to calculations that include all HS items between chapters 1 and 23, plus selected products from chapters 29 and 35, the sector's foreign trade surplus in the first half of 2022 declined by 22.1 percent compared to the same period of the previous year. According to foreign trade data released under the Special Trade System (STS), in the first 6 months of 2022, exports increased by 19.5 percent compared to the same period of the previous year, reaching USD 12.15 billion, while imports rose by 31.3 percent to USD 10.41 billion. While the sector viewed exports rising by 19.5 percent in the first 6 months of 2022 compared to the previous year positively, the faster growth in imports (31.3 percent) also drew attention. In June 2022, monthly exports increased by 14 percent compared to the same month of the previous year, reaching USD 2.14 billion, while imports rose by 51.2 percent to USD 1.79 billion.  

Trade surplus behind prior year levels

In the first 6 months of 2022, the foreign trade surplus declined by 22.12 percent compared to the same period of the previous year, reaching USD 1.74 billion. Despite the sector maintaining its position as a net exporter for the full year, the first half fell short of the trade surplus achieved in the prior year. In the early months of the year, the increase in trade surplus was at the 50 percent level compared to the previous year. In March, this ratio reached 101.5 percent. However, the high monthly import figures in April, May and especially June, combined with a monthly trade deficit in May, pulled down the trade surplus. Unit export value in the first 6 months of 2022 increased by 9 percent compared to the same period of the previous year, reaching USD 1,162 per tonne. Import unit value rose by 12.1 percent year-over-year to USD 689 per tonne.

Prominent products

In the first 6 months of 2022, the leading export products were flour (USD 0.65 billion), refined sunflower oil (USD 0.47 billion) and pasta (USD 0.46 billion), together accounting for approximately 13 percent of total exports. In the first 6 months of 2022, the most imported products were wheat (USD 1.6 billion), soybeans (USD 1.2 billion) and crude sunflower oil (USD 0.9 billion). These 3 products made up approximately 35.5 percent of total imports, or more than one-third. In June 2022, the leading export products were refined sunflower oil (USD 138 million), wheat flour (USD 116 million) and cherries (USD 98 million). During the same period, the most imported products were soybeans (USD 292.1 million), wheat (USD 175.3 million) and crude sunflower oil (USD 145.7 million).

Top exporting sectors

When foreign trade data for the first 6 months of 2022 were examined by sector, sugar and sugar preparations (USD 1,196 million), vegetable oil (USD 1,043 million), fresh fruits (USD 981 million), tree nuts (USD 938 million) and fishery and aquaculture products (USD 734 million) ranked as the top exporting sectors. These 5 sectors accounted for 40.3 percent of total exports. In the first 6 months of 2022, animal feed (USD 3,191 million), vegetable oil (USD 1,984 million), flour (USD 1,799 million), cocoa and chocolate (USD 334 million) and sugar and sugar preparations (USD 255 million) ranked as the top importing sectors. These 5 sectors accounted for 72.7 percent of total imports, nearly three-quarters. The high proportion and its increase compared to previous periods indicate that imports are concentrated in a small number of sectors. Animal feed alone constituted 30.7 percent of total imports in the first 6 months of 2022, with a volume of USD 3,191 million, or nearly one-third. The vegetable oil sector, with imports exceeding USD 3 billion in 2021, accounted for 17.9 percent of total imports. In the first half of 2022, it again constituted 19.1 percent of total imports with USD 1,984 million.

Leading countries in foreign trade

When foreign trade data for the first 6 months of 2022 were examined on a country basis, the top 5 export destinations were Iraq (USD 1,723 million), Germany (USD 817 million), United States (USD 725 million), Russia (USD 692 million) and Italy (USD 381 million). Exports to these 5 countries accounted for 35.7 percent of total exports. The most exported products by country were frozen chicken meat, flour and tomato paste for Iraq; hazelnut kernels, packaged hazelnuts and cherries for Germany; chewing gum and jelly sweets, apple juice and soybeans for the United States. When examining import data by country, in the first 6 months of 2022, the countries with the highest imports were Russia (USD 2,861 million), Brazil (USD 1,098 million), Ukraine (USD 1,070 million), Malaysia (USD 563 million) and the United States (USD 537 million). Imports from these 5 countries accounted for 58.9 percent of total imports. The fact that two of Turkey's top 3 import sources were Russia and Ukraine, and that Russia's share in all imports approached 28 percent, drew particular attention. Imports from Russia and Ukraine accounted for 37.8 percent of total imports. The prominent import products were wheat, crude sunflower oil and maize from Russia; soybeans, coffee and wheat from Brazil; and wheat, maize and sunflower from Ukraine.