Turkstat announced foreign trade indices for Turkiye for the month of March and compared statics with the same month in the previous year.

As compared with the corresponding month of the preceding year, the overall export unit value index decreased by 6.3% in March.

In the same month, compared to March 2018, the index for food, beverages, and tobacco, crude materials (except fuels), fuels and manufactured goods (except food, beverages, and tobacco) decreased by 3.7%, 5.5%, 0.5%, and 6.7%, respectively. The overall export unit value index decreased by 6% in Quarter I 2019, compared to the corresponding quarter of the preceding year. As compared with the corresponding month of the preceding year, the overall import unit value index decreased by 1.7% in March.

While the index for fuels increased by 7.8%, the index for food, beverages, and tobacco, crude materials (except fuels) and manufactured goods (except food, beverages, and tobacco) decreased by 1.8%, 8.1%, and 4%, respectively. The overall import unit value index decreased by 2.3% in Quarter I 2019, compared to the corresponding quarter of the preceding year.

The overall export volume index compared to the corresponding month of the preceding year increased by 6.2% in March.

Compared with March 2018, while the index for crude materials (except fuels) decreased by 5.5%, the index for food, beverages and tobacco, fuels and manufactured goods (except food, beverages, and tobacco) increased by 3.9%, 83.1%, and 6.4%, respectively. The overall export volume index increased by 9.2% in Quarter I 2019, compared to the corresponding quarter of the preceding year.

In March, the overall import volume index compared to the corresponding month of the preceding year decreased by 16.3%.

While the index for fuels increased by 2.6%, the index for food, beverages, and tobacco, crude materials (except fuels) and manufactured goods (except food, beverages, and tobacco) decreased by 2.9%, 0.5%, and 22.7%, respectively. The overall import volume index decreased by 18.9% in Quarter I 2019, compared to the corresponding quarter of the preceding year.

The calendar and seasonally adjusted export volume index which was 161.1 in February 2019, increased by 2.9%, to 165.8 in March 2019. The calendar adjusted export volume index which was 161.3 in March 2018, increased by 10%, to 177.4 in March 2019.

The calendar and seasonally adjusted import volume index which was 121.2 in February 2019, decreased by 0.5%, to 120.6 in March 2019. The calendar adjusted import volume index which was 148.7 in March 2018, decreased by 14.6%, to 127 in March 2019.

Terms of trade are calculated by dividing the export unit value index by the import unit value index, then multiplying the result by 100. While terms of trade were 105.8 in March 2018, it decreased by 4.8 points to 101 in March 2019.

Terms of trade decreased by 4 points to 101.3 in Quarter I 2019, compared to the corresponding quarter of the preceding year.

ILKHA