US President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs brought some relief when it came to Turkey as most sectors escaped with just a 10% tariff.

However, Turkey’s auto and automotive parts producers, won’t escape the 25% tariff imposed on all automotive imports that head for the US. The vehicle levy takes effect on April 3 and the parts levy on May 3.

The US is Turkey’s ninth largest market for automotive exports. Sales amounted to $1.2bn in 2024 and were mainly made up of shipments of components.

Turkish sectors that will only face a 10% tariff include chemicals and chemical products (2024 exports to the US: $1.5bn) and ready-to-wear and apparel (2024 exports to the US: $856mn). 

However, Bozkurt Aran, director of the Multilateral Trade Studies Centre at the Economic Policy Research Foundation of Türkiye, told AGBI that he did not see the biggest issue at hand as the 10% tariffs on most Turkish exports to the US, or the potential blow to overall Turkey-US annual trade of approximately $30bn.

“This is not about 10 percent, this is about what Trump is actually doing to end regulated trade,” Aran said.

“Turkey sees exports as a fundamental base of its development, so with Trump’s moves leading to a collapse of the global trading system this will have a significantly negative impact on Turkey. Not because of harm to its exports to the US but due to the obstruction or complications posed to international trade,” he said.

On the other hand, the downward pressure exerted on energy prices by Trump taking a wrecking ball to the global trade system, could be a boon for gas and oil poor Turkey, given its huge yearly energy import bill.

Last year, the US ranked as Turkey’s ninth-largest export market, with exports reaching $16.35bn, roughly 6% of Turkey’s overall export volume. Imports from the US were almost level at $16.23bn, Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK, or TurkStat) data shows.

White goods, steel products, textiles and machinery are other export items Turkey ships to the US.

Given the near-balanced trade, Ankara will seek an exemption from the tariffs. Turkey does not impose such tariffs on US goods.