Turkey's trade deficit widened by a larger-than-expected 37 percent from a year earlier to $8.142 billion in August, Turkish Statistics Institute data showed on Friday. The deficit surpassed economists' consensus forecast of $7.5 billion as exports rose 26.3 percent year-on-year to $11.038 billion and imports climbed 30.6 percent to $19.181 billion.
Fifteen analysts polled by Reuters had on average expected exports of $11.2 billion and imports of $18.7 billion. The July deficit was revised to $7.956 billion from the $7.954 billion reported previously. The trade shortfall had been expected to narrow from July due to falls in crude oil and other energy prices which represent a major element of the current account deficit.
In the first eight months of the year, exports rose 37.4 percent to $92.489 billion while imports climbed 35.8 percent to $145.577 billion. In August 2007, the trade deficit stood at $6.28 billion. The latest Reuters poll had showed economists expected a 2008 deficit of $81.5 billion, compared with a forecast of $80 billion in the previous monthly survey.