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How much of Germany’s trade passes through the Turkish Straits?

In 2024, an estimated $92.9 billion of Germany’s trade passed through the Turkish Straits, 7.4% of its seaborne trade. That is $50.5 billion of exports and $42.4 billion of imports. The partners with the most trade through it are Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria.

Summary

Estimated value
$92.9billion
Of its seaborne trade
7.4%
Exports
$50.5billion
Imports
$42.4billion

Trend

Estimated value per year

Germany’s estimated trade through the Turkish Straits rose 16% between 2019 and 2024

Value in USD billions

  • Germany 92.9

Source: CEPII BACI

Show the numbers
YearEstimated valueOf its seaborne trade
1995$13.1 billion3.6%
1996$16.1 billion4.2%
1997$18.4 billion4.5%
1998$17.8 billion4.3%
1999$16.5 billion4%
2000$19.5 billion4.4%
2001$19.6 billion4.4%
2002$22.3 billion4.6%
2003$27 billion4.8%
2004$35.7 billion5.5%
2005$41.4 billion5.7%
2006$49.8 billion5.9%
2007$61 billion6.5%
2008$68.6 billion6.7%
2009$49.3 billion6.3%
2010$60.8 billion6.4%
2011$77.2 billion7%
2012$76.3 billion7.3%
2013$79.6 billion7.4%
2014$79.2 billion7.2%
2015$69.2 billion6.8%
2016$70.7 billion7.1%
2017$80.6 billion7.5%
2018$87 billion7.5%
2019$80 billion7.1%
2020$74 billion7.3%
2021$89 billion7.3%
2022$98.6 billion7.3%
2023$94.2 billion7.2%
2024$92.9 billion7.4%

Partners whose trade crosses it

Estimated value of its trade with each partner that crosses the chokepoint; the percentage is the share of all its trade through the chokepoint, not of the pair’s trade.

  1. Germany–Turkey$32.8 billion · 35.3%
  2. Germany–Romania$32.7 billion · 35.2%
  3. Germany–Bulgaria$8.5 billion · 9.2%
  4. Germany–Ukraine$7.2 billion · 7.7%
  5. Germany–Kazakhstan$4.7 billion · 5.1%
  6. Germany–Russia$2.3 billion · 2.5%
  7. Germany–Azerbaijan$1.5 billion · 1.6%
  8. Germany–Georgia$1.1 billion · 1.2%
  9. Germany–Uzbekistan$694 million · 0.75%
  10. Germany–Moldova$672 million · 0.72%

What crosses it

The products with the highest estimated value in 2024, with their share of the total through the chokepoint.

  1. Cars$8.8 billion · 9.5%
  2. Auto parts$7.3 billion · 7.8%
  3. Crude petroleum$3.7 billion · 4%
  4. Cables and wire$2.9 billion · 3.1%
  5. Medicines in measured doses or retail packs$1.9 billion · 2%
  6. Engine parts$1.7 billion · 1.8%
  7. Trucks$1.6 billion · 1.7%
  8. Unrefined copper$1.2 billion · 1.3%
  9. Low-voltage switches and connectors$1.2 billion · 1.2%
  10. Other plastic articles$1.1 billion · 1.2%

Reference ports

Hamburg (88%) and Rostock (12%)

Each port with the weight it receives from the country’s trade, based on where its GDP is generated and which coast is closest.

Other chokepoints it uses

Sources and method

Sources and licenses

Methodology

We estimate the value crossing each chokepoint from BACI trade that travels by sea according to our mode heuristic, split between each country’s ports by where its GDP is generated and which coast is closest, and routed over our own sea network. It is an estimate, not a count of ships. It covers 99.9% of seaborne trade. The approach follows Verschuur, Lumma and Hall (Nature Communications, 2025). Data up to 2024.

The Bosporus and the Dardanelles are counted together: they are the two gates between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean.

All maritime chokepoints