Turkish economy grew by 3.6 per cent in 2025: Capital emerges as the winner of growth
The Turkish economy has concluded the year with a growth rate of 3.6 per cent. While GDP per capita rose to 18,040 dollars, the share of labour within the generated value added declined, whereas the profit and total share of capital increased.
Duygu Ayber Gültekin
The Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK) has shared the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) results for the fourth quarter and the full year of 2025 with the public. According to the announced data, the Turkish economy recorded a growth of 3.6 per cent in 2025 compared to the previous year, based on the production method and chained volume index.
GDP exceeded 63 trillion lira
GDP at current prices increased by 41.3 per cent in 2025 compared to the previous year, reaching 63 trillion 20 billion 906 million TL. Along with this growth in the economy, GDP per capita in 2025 was calculated as 712,200 TL at current prices, and 18,040 US dollars. When analysed on a sectoral basis, the highest growth was seen in the construction sector at 10.8 per cent, while information and communication activities increased by 8.0 per cent; the agricultural sector, however, contracted by 8.8 per cent.
Consumption expenditure shouldered the growth
Consumption was once again the main driver of economic growth. Final consumption expenditure of resident households showed an increase of 4.1 per cent in 2025 according to the chained volume index. The share of household consumption within GDP at current prices was realised at 54.4 per cent. Throughout the year, exports of goods and services decreased by 0.3 per cent, while imports recorded an increase of 4.9 per cent.
Labour's share narrowed, capital's profit climbed
TÜİK data revealed that the gap in the distribution of created economic value widened further in favour of capital in 2025. According to GDP results calculated by the income method, while labour payments (wages) increased by 40.4 per cent in 2025 compared to the previous year, the increase in the net operating surplus/mixed income item, which expresses the profit of capital, surpassed wage increases at 44.2 per cent.
This situation was directly reflected in the shares received from national income. The share of labour payments within Gross Value Added, which was 37.0 per cent last year, receded to 36.9 per cent in 2025. In contrast, the share of net operating surplus/mixed income rose from 43.1 per cent to 44.1 per cent. During the same period, as net taxes on production continued to remain at negative values, it was observed that the space created by this decrease in taxes was transferred predominantly to capital profits rather than labour. When looking specifically at the fourth quarter, the picture in income distribution became even more distinct; while the share of net taxes on production was minus 1.9 per cent, the share of labour receded to as low as 33.7 per cent, and the share of net operating surplus (capital profit) climbed to 49.1 per cent.
Labour payments, which received a 34.7 per cent share of Gross Value Added in the fourth quarter of 2024, fell to 33.7 per cent in the final quarter of 2025. In the same period, the share of net operating surplus, representing the profit of capital, climbed from the 48.0 per cent level to 49.1 per cent.
