Türkiye’s trade with fellow members of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) has risen 6.6 percent year-on-year to $10.1 billion in the first seven months of 2026, according to the Turkish Trade Ministry.
The ministry said on Monday that trade between Türkiye and other OTS members had expanded nearly twentyfold since 2002, rising from $871 million to $16.9 billion by the end of 2025.
Kazakhstan was Türkiye’s largest trading partner among OTS members last year, with bilateral trade totalling $7.8 billion.
It was followed by Azerbaijan with $4.3 billion, Uzbekistan with $3.1 billion and Kyrgyzstan with $1.6 billion.
Trade with observer countries also grows
Türkiye’s trade with OTS observer countries — Turkmenistan, Hungary and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus — increased 6.8 percent in 2025 to $10 billion.
In January-July 2026, trade with the observer countries rose 5.1 percent from the same period a year earlier to $6.1 billion.
Annualised trade with OTS members and observer countries consequently reached $27.8 billion as of July, according to the ministry.
The OTS was established in 2009 and adopted its current name at the Istanbul Summit in 2021. Türkiye, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan are members, while Turkmenistan, Hungary and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus have observer status.
Global production shifts to the east
The ministry said the eastward shift in the centre of global production and trade over the past quarter-century had increased the strategic importance of the Turkic region within international trade and logistics networks.
It added that opportunities offered by the Trans-Caspian East-West-Middle Corridor, commonly known as the Middle Corridor, held significant potential for deeper economic integration across the Turkic world.
The ministry said Türkiye would continue efforts to strengthen economic and commercial integration within the OTS and make effective use of the Middle Corridor’s strategic advantages.
It said these efforts would help further reinforce the Turkic world’s position in global trade.
