Turkey's exports in August rose 29.1 per cent on last year to reach $3.89 billion despite the appreciating lira, according to the Turkish Exporters' Assembly (TIM).
The government sees exports as the motor behind its economic recovery from a punishing 2001 recession and targets $43.5 billion worth of exports this year as it works to meet a year-end IMF-backed growth target of five per cent.
TIM said in a statement that exports rose 33.7 per cent in the first eight months of the year to $29.81 billion. Exports had stood at $22.3 billion in the same period last year.
Despite the rise in exports, imports have grown at a faster pace, prompted in part by the recent rally in the lira currency. The current account deficit widened to $4 billion by the end of June. The government in July changed its year-end current account deficit target to $7.4 billion.