He export climate for Turkish manufacturers continued to improve at the start of the second quarter of 2025, although to a lesser extent, as uncertainty around global trade conditions led to slower activity in some key export markets, according to a survey on May 8. The Istanbul Chamber of Industry (İSO) Türkiye Manufacturing Export Climate Index posted 50.8 in April, down from 51.5 in March and signaling a modest strengthening in export demand conditions. Any reading above the 50 no-change mark indicates an improvement in the health of the export climate.
The latest improvement was the least marked in five months but nonetheless extended the current positive sequence that began in January 2024, the survey said. “Widespread uncertainty around global trade conditions provides a challenge for Turkish manufacturing exporters at present, so it was encouraging to see the demand climate continuing to improve in April, albeit to a lesser extent,” commented Andrew Harker, economics director at S&P Global Market Intelligence.
The degree to which disruption impacts key export destinations will be central to determining how much success Turkish exporters will have in selling abroad over the months ahead, Harker said.
