PTT releases first-half operating figures
Türkiye's state-owned postal operator PTT handled 210 million postal and cargo items in the first six months of 2026. According to figures shared on August 11 by Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu, cargo volume increased by approximately 17 percent compared with the same period last year. The announcement offers a current view of the operator's daily scale and the pressure that changing parcel demand places on its distribution network.
Anadolu Agency, Demirören News Agency and İhlas News Agency published the figures on the same day, citing Uraloğlu's written statement based on PTT data. The 210 million total combines postal and cargo items, while the 17 percent year-on-year rise refers specifically to cargo volume. The two figures therefore describe different measurements and should not be treated as interchangeable.
Daily acceptance and delivery exceeded one million
The disclosed details show that PTT recorded more than one million cargo acceptances and deliveries on an average day during the first half. On campaign days, daily activity rose above three million. The delivery ratio was reported at around 95 percent. Together, these indicators show a sizable difference between ordinary operations and peak promotional periods, underlining the need to plan capacity for short, intense surges.
Istanbul ranked first for accepted shipments, followed by Ankara, Izmir, Kocaeli and Bursa. For delivered shipments, the five leading provinces were Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Bursa and Antalya. Kocaeli's place on the acceptance list and Antalya's appearance on the delivery list suggest that production, commerce and consumer centres can play different roles in the network. The statement did not provide absolute totals by province, so the size of the gaps cannot be calculated.
What the figures show
The six-month total illustrates the breadth of PTT's physical distribution operation. The roughly 17 percent rise in cargo volume provides a direct comparison with the corresponding period of 2025 and shows that parcel traffic was higher. However, the statement includes no revenue, cost, market-share or private-operator comparison. It would therefore be inaccurate to use the operating increase alone as proof of stronger financial performance.
Uraloğlu emphasised PTT's nationwide service network and delivery capacity. The disclosed figures are a useful reference for understanding the operator's first-half activity, but they represent PTT rather than Türkiye's entire postal and parcel market. A complete sector assessment would require comparable data from the regulator and other operators for the same period.
Indicators to watch in the second half
For the remainder of the year, key measures will include the overall shipment count, capacity during campaign periods, the delivery ratio and regional distribution. The first-half figures show that activity could exceed three million transactions on busy days, but officials did not publish a formal forecast for the full year. Waiting for additional period data is therefore more reliable than extrapolating a year-end total from the first six months.
In summary, PTT completed the first half of 2026 with 210 million postal and cargo items handled. Cargo volume rose by about 17 percent and average daily acceptance and delivery activity exceeded one million. The numbers demonstrate substantial operating scale, while leaving financial performance and the broader market picture outside the scope of the announcement.
