Ankara said on Friday it wants to negotiate with the United States to lift the 10% additional tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump, which officials say could still provide a relative advantage for Türkiye.
Trump announced a minimum tariff of 10% on global imports, with the tax rate running much higher on products from certain countries like China and those from the European Union. Smaller, poorer countries in Asia were slapped with tariffs as high as 49%.
Türkiye is not on the list of nations facing country-specific additional duties and is subject to the 10% baseline tax, which Trade Minister Ömer Bolat said on Friday was the "best of the worst," given higher tariffs on many other countries.
Ankara still wants to engage in dialogue to try to agree an exemption from the new duties, citing a bilateral trade that Bolat says is in favor of the United States.
"We want to discuss the issue in negotiations with the U.S. Department of Commerce and Trade Representative... since there is a $2.4 billion surplus in favour of the U.S. in trade between the two countries for 2024," he said.
Despite the new tariffs, Türkiye is in a relatively better position than other countries facing much steeper increases, according to Bolat.
That view was echoed by Mustafa Gültepe, head of the Turkish Exporters Assembly (TIM), who said on Thursday the tariffs could offer a relative advantage for Türkiye's exports to the U.S.
However, Gültepe cautioned they might negatively impact sales to the European Union (EU) due to their potential adverse effects on global growth.
Bilateral trade between Türkiye and the U.S. jumped 4.7% to $35.2 billion. The U.S. accounted for 6.2% of Türkiye's total exports, making it the country's second-largest export destination. However, the U.S. maintained a $2.4 billion trade surplus.
The two countries have been targeting a $100 billion annual goods exchange, a goal initially set by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Trump during the later's first term in 2017-2021.
Bolat said they are still committed and will maintain efforts to achieve the target.
Trump's "Liberation Day" set of tariffs includes an additional 34% tax on China on top of the existing 20%. Other tariffs include 20% for the EU, 46% for Vietnam, 24% for Japan, 25% for South Korea, 26% for India, 32% for Taiwan, 36% for Thailand, and 32% for Indonesia.
"The U.S. imposing a 34% tariff on China and high tariffs on Asian countries that are among its key import markets like Vietnam, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, India, Indonesia and Malaysia means we can anticipate a decline in U.S. imports from these regions," said Gültepe.
"The lower additional tariffs on Türkiye compared to Asian countries present a potential advantage for us in exporting to the U.S.," he noted.
Gültepe also emphasized the importance of improving Türkiye's competitive conditions to capitalize on this relative advantage.
Ankara plans to accelerate sectoral preparations, boost trade diplomacy and push for the removal of the new tariffs, according to Bolat.
He said he would travel to the U.S. in May to discuss improving trade and the additional levies.
Noting that Trump's new trade policies are expected to accelerate shifts in global supply chains, Bolat said sectoral steps will be taken to increase Türkiye's share of the U.S. market under the framework of a "win-win" principle.
He also warned the tariffs could cause significant disruptions in trade ties with the U.S., as well as in global export markets.
To minimize the potential impact and leverage new opportunities, Türkiye will implement preparations in key sectors, including textiles, ready-wear clothing and machinery, Bolat explained.
Following last month's phone call between Trump and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the deputy trade minister held a meeting with the U.S. deputy trade representative, said Bolat.
The discussions focused on resolving mutual trade challenges, defining a road map for economic relations and identifying new steps to enhance bilateral trade.
Additionally, Bolat announced that both sides agreed to convene the next meeting of the Trade and Investment Council as soon as possible to enhance trade and cooperation.
Bolat will attend the Turkish-American Conference in Washington in May, where he said he will hold talks with the U.S. commerce secretary and the trade representative to outline a joint business plan.
Economists say the new set of tariffs threaten to dismantle much of the architecture of the global economy and trigger broader trade wars, carrying the risk of a potentially toxic mix of weakening economic growth and higher inflation.
The levies could have unfavorable repercussions on Türkiye's exports to the EU, the receiver of almost half of Turkish exports, according to Gültepe.
"We foresee that the new U.S. tariffs will negatively impact growth in major markets, especially the EU and China, leading to a decrease in global growth and trade. This situation could have negative spillover effects on our exports to the EU, which is our largest market," he said.
Regardless of the developments in U.S. trade policy, Turkish exporters are actively working to diversify their markets. Gültepe said.
“We are focusing on increasing our share in markets like Canada, Mexico and South America by organizing delegation programs in these regions. Moving forward, we will intensify our efforts to boost exports to these countries," he noted.
On the other hand, Gültepe said they are paying greater attention to the Middle East and Africa, "aiming to increase our exports to these regions, which are likely to be less affected by the U.S. tariff increases."
