Canada Announces Türkiye Trade-Finance Pact as Imports From Türkiye Outweigh Exports Nearly Three to One

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Canada’s commercial relationship with Türkiye is moving beyond diplomatic commitments and into the machinery that can help companies finance international business. Export Development Canada announced on October 26 that it had signed a memorandum of understanding with Türk Eximbank, creating a framework for the two countries’ export credit agencies to support trade, investment and joint projects.

The agreement arrives alongside a striking imbalance in bilateral merchandise trade. In 2025, Canada exported about C$1.1 billion in goods to Türkiye while importing C$3.2 billion, meaning imports were roughly 2.9 times larger than exports. The new financing arrangement will not erase that gap by itself. Instead, it could give Canadian and Turkish companies more ways to share financial risk and pursue large projects together as Ottawa simultaneously pushes ahead with free-trade negotiations and a broader effort to diversify Canadian commerce.

The Pact Is a Financing Framework, Not a Free-Trade Agreement

The agreement brings together Export Development Canada, Canada’s official export credit agency and federal Crown corporation, and Türk Eximbank, Türkiye’s official export credit agency. Rather than immediately creating new tariff preferences, the memorandum establishes a framework under which the institutions can identify opportunities and consider ways to support Canadian and Turkish businesses operating internationally. Those possibilities include co-financing, co-insurance, co-guarantees and reinsurance, along with greater sharing of knowledge about export credit, international business development and trade finance.

That distinction matters. A Canadian company does not suddenly receive automatic financing simply because the memorandum has been signed, nor does the deal eliminate customs duties on goods moving between the two countries. What it does is create another institutional route through which complicated international transactions could potentially be structured. For a Canadian equipment supplier working alongside a Turkish contractor on an overseas infrastructure project, for example, coordinated participation by two export credit agencies could make risk-sharing more practical. Each transaction would still have to satisfy the financial, risk and eligibility requirements of the institutions involved.

A C$2.1 Billion Merchandise Gap Sits Behind the Announcement

Canada and Türkiye traded more than C$4.3 billion worth of merchandise in 2025, but that commerce was far from evenly divided. Canadian merchandise exports to Türkiye totalled approximately C$1.1 billion, compared with C$3.2 billion in imports. Using those rounded government figures, Canada imported roughly C$2.9 worth of Turkish merchandise for every C$1 it exported there, producing a merchandise trade gap of about C$2.1 billion.

The imbalance does not necessarily mean that the economic relationship is weak. Bilateral merchandise trade has grown by almost 50% since 2020, according to the Canadian government, and officials are now looking for ways to broaden the types of commercial activity taking place between the countries. Still, the numbers illustrate the challenge facing Ottawa if one objective is to turn Türkiye into a substantially larger market for Canadian businesses. Closing even part of the gap would require Canadian exporters to win significantly more business, particularly in sectors where the government believes Canada has competitive advantages. The finance memorandum could support that process, but actual export growth will ultimately depend on contracts, market access and commercial demand.

Canada and Türkiye Sell Each Other Very Different Things

The trade relationship becomes more revealing when the headline totals are broken down. Canada’s largest export categories to Türkiye in 2025 included C$287 million in agriculture and agri-food products, C$273 million in aircraft and transportation equipment, and C$151 million in industrial machinery. At the individual-product level, Canadian lentil exports were worth about C$173 million, while aircraft accounted for approximately C$161 million. Alloy-steel waste and scrap and optical instruments were also among the notable Canadian exports.

Imports from Türkiye were considerably larger and spread across a substantial consumer and industrial base. Consumer goods represented about C$1.27 billion, followed by C$480 million in metal and non-metallic mineral products and C$316 million in forestry, building and packaging materials. Government figures also identify pharmaceuticals, fishing vessels, rugs and textiles, and turbine-engine components among significant individual imports. That mix helps explain why balancing bilateral trade is more complicated than simply increasing sales in one Canadian commodity. Canada would need growth across several categories—potentially agriculture, aerospace, machinery, energy technology and professional services—to materially change the current merchandise relationship.

Türkiye Fits Canada’s Much Larger Trade-Diversification Strategy

The timing is important because Canada is trying to reduce the economic risks that come with having one overwhelmingly dominant export market. Global Affairs Canada reported that 72% of Canadian goods exports went to the United States in 2025. At the same time, exports to non-U.S. markets increased by 11.1%, pushing their share of Canadian exports to the highest level recorded since 1981. Ottawa has now set a longer-term objective of doubling Canadian exports to non-U.S. markets over the next decade.

Türkiye offers an interesting platform for that strategy because officials increasingly describe the country as more than a market for direct Canadian sales. It has a population exceeding 85 million and a network of free-trade agreements connecting it with numerous markets. The EDC–Türk Eximbank arrangement specifically identifies opportunities in Africa, the Middle East and North Africa, Central Asia and other markets of mutual interest. That means a Canadian company may benefit from the relationship even when the final customer is neither Canadian nor Turkish. The strategy is partly about combining capabilities and pursuing contracts elsewhere—turning bilateral cooperation into a route toward third-country business.

Energy, Infrastructure and Critical Minerals Are Central to the Strategy

The sectors named in the finance memorandum closely match the industries Canada and Türkiye have been emphasizing in their wider strategic partnership. EDC and Türk Eximbank identified energy and the energy transition, infrastructure, transportation, mining and critical minerals, and social infrastructure as areas where businesses from the two countries could have complementary strengths. These tend to be capital-intensive industries where long project timelines and large financing requirements can make export-credit support particularly relevant.

Energy cooperation has developed on a parallel track. Canadian and Turkish ministers recently agreed to pursue deeper cooperation involving liquefied natural gas, civil nuclear energy, renewable power, clean technologies and mineral supply chains. Canada has also expressed interest in connecting its growing LNG export capacity with potential Turkish buyers and in exploring cooperation involving Canadian nuclear technology. On mining, the governments have discussed everything from exploration and geological expertise to laboratory analysis, resource modelling and battery-mineral technologies. Those initiatives do not guarantee contracts, but they show why the export-credit memorandum is strategically aligned with the broader relationship: many of the opportunities under discussion involve projects where financing can be almost as important as technology.

Export-Credit Cooperation Can Reduce Risk Without Becoming a Blank Cheque

Export credit agencies exist partly because international transactions can expose companies and lenders to risks that ordinary domestic sales do not. EDC offers financing, insurance and guarantees and can work with Canadian exporters, international buyers and financial institutions. Türk Eximbank similarly provides lending, insurance and guarantee products to support Turkish exports. Its international project programs assess applications using factors including the borrower, contractor, project country, repayment capacity and relevant OECD rules for officially supported export credits.

The new memorandum can therefore be viewed as infrastructure for financial cooperation rather than a pot of money waiting to be distributed. The October announcement did not disclose a dedicated funding envelope or identify a first jointly financed project. Instead, the two agencies agreed to examine potential transactions and different methods of sharing support and risk. That is an important limitation for businesses evaluating the announcement. A promising project could still be rejected after credit or risk analysis. At the same time, the existence of a formal relationship can make it easier for the agencies to explore coordinated structures when Canadian and Turkish companies are bidding together, especially on large international projects requiring longer-term financing.

Free-Trade Negotiations Could Have a Bigger Effect on Bilateral Trade

The export-finance agreement is unfolding just before another potentially more consequential process begins. Canada and Türkiye are scheduled to hold the first round of negotiations toward a comprehensive free-trade agreement in Ankara from November 30 to December 4, 2026. The countries announced the launch of the negotiations in July, after exploratory discussions began in June and before Canada conducted public consultations from July 31 through September 14.

Canada’s published negotiating objectives go well beyond reducing customs duties. Ottawa wants to address tariffs and non-tariff barriers, rules of origin, customs procedures, services, investment, financial services, digital trade, intellectual property, government procurement, labour standards, environmental provisions and rules affecting small and medium-sized businesses. Canada has also said it will protect its supply-management system for dairy, poultry and eggs from additional market access. If an agreement is eventually concluded and implemented, those market-access provisions could influence the C$1.1 billion export side of the relationship more directly than the financing memorandum. For now, however, an FTA remains under negotiation rather than an existing trade privilege.

Investment, Air Links and a 2027 Trade Mission Point to a Wider Relationship

Merchandise trade alone also misses an important part of the economic picture. Canadian direct investment in Türkiye stood at approximately C$3.3 billion in 2025, although Global Affairs Canada says that figure was down 19.7% from the previous year. Turkish direct investment in Canada was much smaller, at roughly C$233 million. In other words, while the merchandise trade balance strongly favours Türkiye, the stock of direct investment between the countries runs heavily in the other direction. That provides a useful reminder that bilateral economic relationships cannot always be summarized by the goods deficit alone.

Physical connectivity is expanding as well. The recently expanded Canada–Türkiye Air Transport Agreement allows up to 21 weekly passenger-combination flights per country, compared with 12 previously, along with unlimited weekly all-cargo flights and access to points throughout both countries. Ottawa has also announced that the Minister of International Trade will lead a Canadian trade mission to Türkiye in 2027. Together with free-trade negotiations and the EDC–Türk Eximbank memorandum, those measures create multiple channels for deeper commerce. The next test will be whether businesses turn that expanded framework into contracts large enough to change the trade numbers themselves.

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