ANKARA

Türkiye's exports in 2023 hit a record high of $255.8 billion, ticking up 0.6% from the previous year, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Tuesday.

"Thus, the figure surpassed our medium-term program's target of $255 billion," Erdogan told a news conference in Istanbul on preliminary foreign trade data.

The exports-to-imports coverage ratio gained 0.8 percentage points from the previous year to reach 70.7% in 2023, Erdogan said.

He stressed that the country's foreign trade deficit narrowed 3.2% year-on-year in 2023.

>>>According to separate Trade Ministry data, the trade gap amounted to $106 billion in 2023, down from $109.5 billion in 2022.

"Except for July, our trade gap shrank annually in the last seven months of 2023," he explained.

>>>>Türkiye's imports dropped 0.5% from the prior year to $361.8 billion in 2023, ministry data showed.

>>>>As of October, Türkiye's annual service exports reached a historic high of $99.3 billion, Erdogan underlined.

The president said Türkiye aims to boost its goods and services exports in 2024 to over $375 billion, adding: "Türkiye has more than enough power to accomplish this."

>>Erdogan said the government doubled the budget allocated for export support in 2024 after having provided 11.6 billion lira ($390.6 million) in support to exporters last year.

>>>"Our goal is to leave no country where Turkish products are not recognized and where our exporters have not made a foothold," he noted.

>>>>In December 2023, Türkiye's overseas shipments ticked up 0.44% year-on-year to $23 billion, Erdogan said.

>>>>The country's imports totaled $29.1 billion in December, down 10.7% from a year earlier, ministry data showed.

>>>>For his part, Trade Minister Omer Bolat said according to the latest World Trade Organization data, Türkiye's share in global merchandise exports rose to 1.06% in the first nine months of 2023 from 1.02% in 2022.

>>>>Türkiye's goods exports are projected to hit $267 billion this year and $302 billion in 2026, while services exports are set to exceed $110 billion, he underlined.