Philippines-Türkiye trade could hit $1 billion — envoy

By Justine Irish D. Tabile, Senior Reporter

AGRICULTURAL, seafood and halal exports could help lift trade between the Philippines and Türkiye toward the $1-billion mark, Türkiye Ambassador to the Philippines Niyazi Evren Akyol said.

“We believe it is possible for our bilateral trade to reach $1 billion in the medium term and continue growing beyond that level,” Mr. Akyol told BusinessWorld.

Trade between the Philippines and Türkiye remained modest at $441 million last year, up 11.6% from 2024.

“We believe that the current level of trade remains below its true potential, considering the size of our economies and the complementary nature of our production structures,” he added.

In the first four months, trade between the two countries reached $151 million, comprising $41 million in Turkish exports and $110 million in Philippine exports.

Mr. Akyol identified coconut products, tropical fruits, seafood and halal-certified goods as the Philippines’ biggest export opportunities.

“There is a huge demand in Türkiye for coconut… and tropical fruits, all kinds of it, because the Philippines is a very competitive producer of these,” he said.

“Seafood is another area… We can buy shrimp and other mollusks, which the Philippines produces at very high quality.”

With Türkiye’s large Muslim population, Mr. Akyol said there is also a significant potential for Philippine halal exports.

“Türkiye is one of the leaders in the halal industry and halal accreditation… and we appreciate the fact that the Philippines is making a big effort to bring halal standards here in the Philippines,” he added.

Mr. Akyol said Turkish exporters also see opportunities in construction, consumer goods and agricultural products, including poultry, packaged foods and fresh fruits.

However, structural challenges continue to hamper efforts to expand bilateral trade despite more than 76 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

Mr. Akyol said that bilateral trade remains subdued due to distance, competition from nearby countries, and limited awareness of each other’s markets.

“Every country in the world trades first and foremost with the immediate region around it and distance is a challenge because it increases the cost of transport, so some products lose their competitiveness because of that,” he said.

Still, the Turkish envoy said distance also creates opportunities for both countries to focus on specialized products such as higher-end textiles.

Mr. Akyol said limited familiarity with each other’s markets constrains trade, although he believes this can be addressed by increasing contacts between businesses.

“Our priority is to increase contact between business people, not only relevant government bodies, departments and ministries meeting each other and comparing notes and thinking about how to facilitate trade,” he added.

Mr. Akyol said he remains optimistic that bilateral trade will continue to grow despite risks from the conflict in the Middle East, adding that any slowdown would likely be temporary.

“I am optimistic. I hope the impact of the war and the crisis in the Middle East will not dampen the momentum we caught. There is a momentum of increase, but just like the coronavirus disease, when something global happens, you can have a slowdown,” he said.

Mr. Akyol also expects the Philippines to remain one of Türkiye’s priority markets under its Far Countries Strategy.

“I can say the Philippines will stay on that list for the foreseeable future as one of the priority countries for Turkish trade,” he added.