UPDATE - Turkey: Foreign trade gap almost halved in July

UPDATES WITH MORE DETAILS

By Tuba Sahin

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey's foreign trade gap in July dropped to almost half the figure from the same month last year, the country's statistical authority announced on Friday.

The country's foreign trade deficit totaled $3.2 billion last month, down from $6 billion in July 2018, TurkStat said.

Turkish exports rose 7.8% year-on-year to hit $15.2 billion, while imports totaled $18.4 billion, falling 8.5% during the same period.

"In July 2019, exports coverage imports was 82.6%, while it was 70% in July 2018," it added.

Data showed that Germany remained Turkey's main export market last month, with $1.4 billion in Turkish goods going there.

"The country was followed by the U.K. with $1 billion, Iraq with $770 million, and France with $741 million," TurkStat said.

During the same period, Russia was the top source for Turkey's imports with $2 billion, followed by Germany ($1.8 billion), China ($1.7 billion), and the U.S. ($1.3 billion).

- 7-month figures

In January-July, Turkey's exports totaled nearly $99 billion, rising 2.7% on a yearly basis.

In contrast, imports saw an annual decline of 18.3% to $117 billion in the first seven months of the year.

The country's foreign trade balance was in a deficit of $18.1 billion from January to July, slipping 6.4% year-on-year.