Istanbul– While the echoes of US President Donald Trump’s decision in the world markets, Ankara breathed a sigh of relief after it was found that it was one of the least affected by his escalatory procedures, as Washington imposed customs duties on Turkish exports by only 10%, at a time when the new fees included major countries with rates exceeding 25% and extended to 50% in some cases.
While global economies are confused in front of the American commercial protection wave, Türkiye finds itself in front of a precise equation: Do you deal with the decision as a possible crisis, or as a rare opportunity to enhance its position in the American market?
Commercial exchange
On the general trade level, Ankara and Washington have largely balanced economic ties. According to the data of the Turkish Statistics Authority, the volume of trade exchange between the two countries amounted to about 32.6 billion dollars in 2024, as Turkey exported $ 16.4 billion to the American market (about 6.2% of its total exports), in exchange for importing goods from America worth 16.2 billion dollars in the same year.
The list of Turkish exports to America includes many important sectors; In 2024, the chemicals came first with a value of about $ 1.5 billion of exports, followed by the automotive industry with 1.2 billion dollars, then ready -made clothes with about 856 million dollars, according to the data of the Council of Turkish exporters.
Türkiye also exported products such as carpets and floors ($ 784 million), electronic equipment ($ 774 million), steel ($ 628 million) and manufactured agricultural products ($ 429 million) to the American market during the same year. This shows the extent of the diversity and volume of trade exchange, which may be affected by the new fees procedures.
Damaged sectors
The Turkish auto sector has emerged among the most affected by the new sectors, due to the announcement of President Trump imposing 25% definitions on all car imports and spare parts. This sector is one of the pillars of Turkish exports to the American market, as Türkiye exported cars and components of $ 1.2 billion to the United States during 2024.
The data of the Turkish Exporters Council indicates that the United States ranked ninth among the largest Turkish car exports markets in 2024 within a record number of 37.2 billion dollars for the exports of the sector in that year, and in the first two months of this year, the United States fell one rank to the tenth rank.
Despite the fluctuation of numbers, Türkiye’s exports from cars to the United States amounted to average $ 1.1 billion annually over the past six years.
In the context, the head of the Automobile Industry Federation in Turkey, Baran Gilic, warned – in a statement to Anatolia – that American fees on cars and cut them by 25% will reflect negatively on the Turkish manufacturers, although a large part of the sector’s exports to America are concentrated in car components, not full vehicles.
On the other hand, most of the other export sectors had relatively lighter fees at only 10% within the new American package, which made sectors such as petrochemicals, weaving and clothing breathing relatively sighing that they only faced lower fees, compared to what was imposed on cars.
Turkish relief
The Turkish government was quick to adopt diplomatic and economic steps to reduce the consequences of the US decision on its economy. In this context, Turkish Trade Minister Omar Balla stressed that Ankara will intensify its efforts to enhance trade relations with Washington and seek to remove or reduce new fees through negotiations.
“We want to discuss this issue in negotiations with the US Department of Commerce and its commercial representative, due to the presence of a surplus of $ 2.4 billion in favor of the United States in the trade balance between the two countries for the year 2024.”
In this context, the Turkish minister announced that he will visit Washington next May to attend the Turkish -American business conference and meet the officials of the Ministry of Trade and the American commercial representative, with the aim of offering a joint action plan that is compatible with the new reality.
For its part, the Council of Turkish Exporters notes that the tariff remains at a 10% level gives Turkish exports an opportunity to continue to enter the American market without great obstacles, especially since the US share does not exceed 6% of the total Turkish exports as mentioned above.
The council stresses that the various composition of Turkish exports and its markets will help in largely absorbing the shock, with the ability to redirect products to alternative markets or strengthen the local market if necessary.
In the context, economic analyst Mustafa Akoch believes that Turkey has an opportunity that should not be underestimated, noting that the fees imposed on competing countries such as China, Korea and the European Union may open a void in the American market, Turkish exports can fill it.
But he warns – in an interview with Al -Jazeera Net – that “exploiting the opportunity without accurate calculations may lead to counterproductive results, if Ankara is considered excessively or unbalanced, which may cause Washington to raise the fees later or impose non -customs restrictions.”
He adds that Türkiye has an advanced industrial base in sectors such as home appliances, equipment and cars, but its ability to expand its share in the American market is linked quickly to its response and the dynamics of the private sector, as well as effective government support in promotional and logistical aspects.
Flexibility test
For his part, Hakki Airul John, economic researcher at Haji Bayram University, believes that Turkey has relative economic immunity in the face of American drawings, based on the customs war war in 2018, when it managed to adapt by directing its exports to alternative markets after Washington imposed fees on Turkish steel.
Speaking to Al -Jazeera Net, Irol John confirms that the current challenge goes beyond what happened in 2018 in terms of the widening scope of the fees and their inclusion of more diverse sectors, which makes it more complicated.
It indicates that the strongest paper owned by Ankara today may not be purely economic, but rather related to its political geography and regional role, as it is a member of NATO (NATO), and a critical partner in stability files in the Middle East and Eastern Europe, which may be a reflection of an American desire to support the stability of the Turkish economy and not to weaken it in a sensitive regional circumstance.
He concludes by saying that Türkiye should not be satisfied with absorbing the shock, but rather that this stage is invested in building a more advanced production base, and enhancing its exports in the fields of technology and high valuable products.
