Türkiye's February Exports Reached 21 Billion 65 Million Dollars
Türkiye Exporters Assembly Chairman Mustafa Gültepe: The automotive industry sustained its undisputed leadership in February with exports amounting to 3.5 billion dollars by a significant margin. It was followed by chemicals with 2.3 billion dollars, electrical and electronics with 1.4 billion dollars, ready-to-wear apparel with 1.3 billion dollars, and steel with 1.2 billion dollars. While our exports in automotive and electrical-electronics increased among the top five sectors last month, exports in chemicals, ready-to-wear apparel, and steel declined.
Türkiye's exports in February increased by 1.6 percent to 21 billion 65 million dollars. In the January–February period, cumulative exports for the first two months reached 41.4 billion dollars, while exports over the past twelve months totaled 272.8 billion dollars.
The February export figures were announced in Ankara by Minister of Trade Prof. Dr. Ömer Bolat and Türkiye Exporters Assembly (TİM) Chairman Mustafa Gültepe.
“While 14 of our sectors increased their exports, 12 sectors experienced contraction”
In his address, TİM Chairman Mustafa Gültepe stated that they were closely and anxiously monitoring the developments triggered by Israel and the United States' attack on Iran. Emphasizing that such conflicts inflict irreparable damage not only in terms of humanitarian tragedies but also upon global trade, Gültepe underscored the severe burden imposed by escalating energy costs and prolonged logistical processes. Regarding the February export data, Gültepe stated the following:
“According to the General Trade System (GTS) records, we achieved exports of 21 billion 65 million dollars in February. This represents a 1.6 percent increase compared to the same month of the previous year. We estimate that our services exports in February will amount to approximately nine billion dollars. In the sectoral ranking, automotive maintained its clear leadership with 3.5 billion dollars. It was followed by chemicals with 2.3 billion dollars, electrical-electronics with 1.4 billion dollars, ready-to-wear apparel with 1.3 billion dollars, and steel with 1.2 billion dollars. Among the sectors ranking in the top five last month, automotive recorded a 19 percent increase and electrical-electronics a 9 percent increase in exports, whereas our chemicals exports declined by 7 percent, ready-to-wear apparel by 2 percent, and steel by 3 percent. Overall, 14 of our sectors increased their exports, while 12 sectors experienced contraction. Our top five exporting provinces were İstanbul, Kocaeli, Bursa, Ankara, and İzmir. In February, 950 of our companies realized exports for the first time. The contribution of our new companies to exports is of great significance to us; however, this contribution has been gradually diminishing. Looking at the past year, we observe that February, with 65 million dollars, was the fourth lowest month in terms of contribution from first-time exporting companies.”
The unit export value per kilogram rose to 1.7 dollars
Mustafa Gültepe reported that the unit export value per kilogram increased by 13 percent in February, reaching 1.7 dollars. Noting that this marked the second-highest figure of the past five years in terms of unit export value, Gültepe stated that parity contributed 1.2 billion dollars to exports last month. Gültepe said, “Had it not been for the parity contribution, we would have closed February with an approximate 4 percent decline.”
“Healthy and sustainable growth can be achieved through production and exports”
Evaluating recent developments, Gültepe reiterated his view that healthy and sustainable growth can be secured through production and exports. Stating that they assessed the growth data announced on Monday from this perspective, Gültepe continued as follows:
“The Turkish economy grew by 3.4 percent in the final quarter of 2025. Annual growth stood at 3.6 percent. In the last quarter, household consumption made the strongest contribution to growth. Net exports, however, reduced growth by 1.4 percentage points during the same period. In none of the quarters of 2025 did net exports contribute positively to growth. Yet we believe that at least half of growth should be generated by production and exports. We are convinced that such a composition would be far healthier for our country. As Türkiye Exporters' Assembly and exporters' associations, we continue to work toward our medium- and long-term objectives despite all adverse conditions. Within this framework, we are conducting an intensive delegation program. In February, we completed our delegations in 17 countries, including the United States, Azerbaijan, Romania, Morocco, Spain, and the Philippines. This month, we will organize sectoral and general trade delegations in Russia, Spain, Greece, the United Kingdom, Kazakhstan, the United States, Ghana, and Egypt.”