(Kitco News) –Gold demand in Türkiye has been among the highest in the world in recent years as the country’s acute inflation crisis has driven bullion demand well above the strong global average. But this demand is flagging in 2025 under the combination of persistently high gold prices and the increasing attractiveness of silver, according to the latest data from the Turkish stock exchange.
“Türkiye’s gold imports through Türkiye's stock exchange, Borsa Istanbul, fell to 4.34 tons (139,645 oz) in July 2025, falling by 53.5% from 9.33 tons (299,975 oz) in June and the weakest monthly inflow since April 2023, when imports had stood at 2.88 tons (92,600 oz),” according to a Sunday report from Türkiye Today citing the exchange data. “From January to July 2025, imports reached 72.09 tons (2.32 million oz), nearly flat compared with the 72.24 tons (2.32 million oz) brought in during the same period of 2024,” but average monthly imports declined by 2% to 10.29 tons through July 2025 compared with 10.47 tons in 2024.
Borsa Istanbul noted that Turkish gold imports were far below the peak levels observed in recent years. “Annual imports totaled 125.69 tons (4.04 million oz) in 2024, a sharp reduction from 318.98 tons (10.26 million oz) in 2023,” it noted. “ Borsa Istanbul data show that in 2025, standard bullion imports accounted for 97% of the total, slightly below the 99% share recorded in 2024.”
Domestic gold production has continued its recent contractionary trend as well.
“Local gold production by mining companies also declined in the same period, with output between January and July 2025 amounting to 14.08 tons (452,838 oz), compared with 18.67 tons (600,100 oz) a year earlier,” the exchange said. “The report also noted that Türkiye’s full-year gold production was 31.10 tons (999,919 oz) in 2024, down from 36.14 tons (1.16 million oz) in 2023, extending the downward trend in domestic mining activity.”
The Turkish Mint’s issuance of gold coins and bars also averaged 3.82 tons per month through July 2025, close to half the monthly average of 6.72 tons seen in 2024.
Trading volumes on the Borsa Istanbul also contracted in physical terms but still rose in value through July. “The figures show that the average monthly trading volume in gold stood at 22.94 tons (737,764 oz) by July 2025, marking a 7% decline from 24.80 tons (797,348 oz) a year earlier,” they wrote.
And much of that decline appears to be due to traders moving out of gold and into silver.
“Silver transactions, on the other hand, averaged 67.44 tons (2.17 million oz), a 4% increase compared with 65.07 tons (2.09 million oz) in the same period of 2024,” the exchange noted. “The number of gold transactions edged up to 1,091 in the first seven months of 2025, from 1,022 in 2024. Silver transactions recorded a sharper rise, climbing 38% year-on-year to 743, compared with 539 in the previous year.”
In value terms, gold trading averaged $2.13 billion per month in 2025, up 37% from $1.55 billion in 2024, but silver outdid the yellow metal here as well, with a 47% rise to average $69.3 million per month in 2025 compared to $47.1 million in 2024.
Silver imports also grew significantly as gold imports waned. “Türkiye imported 48.66 tons (1.56 million oz) of silver in July 2025, up from 8.34 tons (268,000 oz) in June,” the exchange said. “For the January–July period, silver inflows reached 302.15 tons (9.71 million oz), compared with 193.01 tons (6.21 million oz) in the same period of 2024.”
Gold is up 47% against the Turkish lira since the beginning of the year, nearly doubling the 27% the yellow metal has gained against the U.S. dollar in 2025 to date.
