With +$1 billion, Iraq ranks 4th among Turkiye's largest importers

Shafaq News / The Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) announced, on Tuesday, that Iraq ranked fourth among the countries importing the most from Turkiye in March.

TurkStat reported that exports amounted to $22.571 billion, down by 4.1%, while imports totaled $29.912 billion, down by 6.3% compared to March 2023.

Germany was the main export partner with $1.749 billion, followed by Italy ($1.288 billion), and the United States ($1.804 billion).

Iraq came fourth with $1.189 billion, followed by the UAE ($1.172 billion).

The top five countries accounted for 29.5% of total exports in March 2024.

Iraq imports most of its goods, commodities, and foodstuffs from neighboring countries, especially Turkiye and Iran, and to a lesser extent from Gulf Arab countries and Jordan.

TurkStat noted that trade between Turkiye and Iraq peaked in the past five years in 2020, reaching a total value of $17.3 billion.

However, that figure is expected to soar as the Turkish Ministry of Trade speculated last week that Turkish exports to Iraq would significantly increase to $15 billion soon and $20 billion by 2030.

Turkish Minister of Trade, Omer Polat, stated to Anadolu Agency that "Iraq has always been one of the most important countries for Turkiye in terms of trade and economic relations."

In mid-April 2024, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited Baghdad and Erbil. During the visit, Iraq signed 26 agreements and memorandums of understanding with Turkiye, covering a wide range of fields.

The agreements signed include a strategic framework agreement, cooperation in water management, infrastructure development projects, economic trade committees, investment protection, military training, security cooperation, cultural exchange, educational collaboration, tourism, labor, judiciary, energy, media, and more.