Maritime trade, port traffic and liner connectivity of Türkiye: container growth, Red Sea exposure and the weak connectivity–trade link
Türkiye'nin deniz ticareti, liman trafiği ve düzenli hat bağlantılılığı: konteyner büyümesi, Kızıldeniz maruziyeti ve bağlantılılık ile ticaret arasındaki zayıf ilişki
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Abstract
Türkiye's ports link Europe, the Black Sea and the Middle East, and their integration into liner networks shapes the country's trade. Using data retrieved live from the open GOMD platform by a notebook that stops when a series is missing, we analysed Türkiye's container port traffic, seaborne cargo and port throughput, and compared merchandise trade, the UNCTAD Liner Shipping Connectivity Index (LSCI) and the World Bank Logistics Performance Index (LPI) with Greece, Italy, Spain, Egypt, Germany and the Netherlands; port-level connectivity (PLSCI) was examined for 14 ports. Container traffic grew from 5.74 million TEU in 2010 to 13.51 million TEU in 2024 (Sen slope +0.55 million TEU per year), and the gross weight of goods handled in Turkish ports rose from 305 to 545 million tonnes between 2008 and 2025. The ratio of seaborne goods loaded to discharged rose from 0.24 in 2000 to 0.44 in 2024, so Türkiye remains a net importer by tonnage. In June 2026 Türkiye's LSCI was 304.6, 32% above its 2019 mean, compared with 415.6 for Spain, 378.8 for the Netherlands and 174.2 for Greece. Ambarlı had the highest port connectivity in Türkiye (501.7 in April 2026) and ranked second of the 14 ports after Algeciras. Between the last quarter of 2023 and the third quarter of 2024, connectivity fell by 17.1% at Port Said, 12.9% at Piraeus, 12.7% at Mersin and 26.4% at İzmir, but only 5.1% at Ambarlı, while Algeciras gained 3.9%. Within countries, a 1% higher LSCI was associated with only 0.46% higher merchandise trade (t = 3.05, within R² = 0.07, N = 140), and container traffic and exports were not cointegrated over 15 years. The results show strong growth and resilience at Türkiye's main hub alongside vulnerable secondary ports, and they caution against reading national connectivity indices as direct drivers of trade.
Keywords
Liner Shipping Connectivity Index; Port connectivity; Container port traffic; Maritime trade; Red Sea crisis; Logistics Performance Index; Türkiye; Eastern Mediterranean
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