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Türkiye's current account balance posted a $36 million surplus in July, below market expectations, pushing the 12-month rolling deficit above $40 billion for the first time since December 2023, central bank data showed Friday.
Market expectations were broadly centered around a $600 million surplus, while the weaker-than-expected result reflected a sharp deterioration in the goods balance and a wider energy deficit.
Türkiye's July current account surplus fell from $1.8 billion a year earlier to just $36 million, an almost 98% drop. The goods deficit widened 22.3% to $5.6 billion from $4.6 billion a year earlier, as imports rose 5.4% while exports increased just 2.3%. The energy deficit also widened 19.7% to around $4.5 billion from $3.8 billion.
The deterioration in goods trade more than offset a modest improvement in services. The services surplus rose 2.7% to $8.2 billion during the month. The primary income deficit also widened sharply, rising from $1.5 billion in July 2025 to $2.6 billion in July 2026, an increase of about 66.2%. The secondary income deficit narrowed from $153 million to $56 million.
On a 12-month rolling basis, Türkiye's current account deficit reached $40.7 billion, up 69.7% from $24 billion a year earlier. The annualized goods deficit widened 23.8% to $77.2 billion, while the services surplus increased 3.6% to $63.5 billion.
Portfolio investments recorded a $5.8 billion net inflow in July, down 6.5% from $6.2 billion a year earlier. Foreign investors made net purchases of $2.0 billion in equities and investment funds and $2.4 billion in government domestic debt securities.
Net direct investment inflows fell much more sharply, dropping 68.4% to $514 million from about $1.6 billion a year earlier. Foreign residents increased their direct investments in Türkiye by $1.2 billion, while Turkish residents increased their investments abroad by $640 million.
Within this, foreign residents made $322 million in net real-estate purchases in Türkiye, while Turkish residents bought $169 million of property abroad.
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