Ankara – Ömer Bolat, Türkiye’s Minister of Trade, announced that Türkiye ranked as the second fastest-growing economy among Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries alongside Poland.
In a written statement regarding 2025 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) data released by Türkiye İstatistik Kurumu (TÜİK), Bolat said the Turkish economy grew by 3.6 percent last year, surpassing the 3.3 percent target set in the Medium-Term Program (OVP). He added that GDP expanded by 3.4 percent in the fourth quarter, marking 22 consecutive quarters of uninterrupted growth.
Bolat highlighted that per capita income reached $18,040 last year, one of the highest levels on record. He also noted that the current account deficit-to-GDP ratio stood at 1.6 percent, remaining below the historical average.
Investment expenditures increased by 7 percent in 2025, contributing 1.8 percentage points to overall growth and supporting expansion for the fifth consecutive quarter. In 2025, value-added growth reached 2.9 percent in the industrial sector and 3.8 percent in the services sector, with services making the largest contribution to overall growth. The construction sector grew by 10.8 percent annually, while agricultural value added declined by 8.8 percent due to frost damage followed by severe drought.
“We will raise Türkiye’s potential growth rate through productivity-focused transformation in production and structural reforms aimed at enhancing competitiveness,” Bolat said.
“Second Fastest-Growing Country”
Recalling that Türkiye maintained growth even during the pandemic period, Bolat noted that the economy expanded by 1.7 percent in 2020, 11.8 percent in 2021, 5 percent in 2023, and 3.3 percent in 2024. Quarterly growth rates last year were 2.5 percent in the first quarter, 4.7 percent in the second, and 3.8 percent in the third, culminating in 3.6 percent annual growth.
“With this growth rate, we became the second fastest-growing country among OECD members that have announced their data, alongside Poland,” he said.
Bolat also stated that the seasonally and calendar-adjusted chained volume index of GDP rose by 0.4 percent quarter-on-quarter. Nominal GDP, which stood at $925 billion in 2022 and $1.358 trillion in 2024, increased to a record $1.596 trillion in 2025.
Private consumption made the largest contribution to growth last year, adding 2.8 percentage points. The contribution of the external balance was minus 1.1 percentage points, while public sector spending contributed 0.1 percentage points.
Bolat emphasized that the data confirmed the resilience of the Turkish economy amid challenging global conditions. He added that efforts would continue at full pace to exceed the $410 billion year-end 2026 target for goods and services exports and to further strengthen the growth momentum.
Source: Patronlar Dünyası/ Prepared by: İlayda Gök