Turkey Current Account Deficit Hits $9.67B in March

Turkey's day was framed by the Iran war's continuing spillover into its current account and by a graft admission deep inside the main opposition party.

The current account deficit widened to $9.67 billion in March — the highest monthly shortfall in three years and the worst since January 2023 — driven by a larger trade deficit on Iran-war energy and commodity prices. Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek told reporters on Wednesday that the deficit would widen further in 2026, attributing the deterioration to elevated energy and commodity prices but calling it "temporary and manageable." Stripping out gold and energy, the March deficit was $3.9 billion, according to the central bank — a contrast that anchors the ministry's framing of the headline number as a war-driven anomaly rather than a domestic-demand problem.

Security operations ran on the same day. Turkish authorities detained 324 suspects in coordinated anti-Daesh operations across 47 provinces, the Interior Ministry announced. The raids — run jointly by the National Intelligence Organization (MIT), police and prosecutors — targeted individuals on the security wanted list, financial supporters, and former operatives. Seized material included weapons, ammunition, digital evidence, and TL 9.67 million ($214,000) in assets.

The opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) faced a deeper corruption file. Özkan Yalım, the former CHP mayor of Uşak, told investigators he paid TL 1.2 million to party chair Özgür Özel and bribed delegates to secure Özel's election as CHP leader in November 2023. Yalım additionally admitted using municipal vehicles and staff for private business, creating fictitious jobs, and converting a Mercedes for Özel at municipal expense. His testimony, released Tuesday, follows similar admissions from former Antalya mayor Muhittin Böcek — making the Özel leadership election the next file Turkish prosecutors appear willing to open.

The day's foreign-policy line ran through Islamabad. Pakistani Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said Pakistan may expand its September 2025 strategic mutual defence agreement with Saudi Arabia to include Turkey and Qatar. Asif described the potential expansion as part of "a new order in economy and defence," and said the agreement aims to reduce dependence on outside powers and strengthen regional stability — a frame that aligns naturally with Ankara's current account exposure to Iran-war energy markets.