This dataset presents foraminiferal trace element ratios at International Ocean Discovery Program Site U1540 (55° 8.47ʹ S, 114° 50.52ʹ W, 3580 m) during Marine Isotope Stage 11. Trace element ratios, including Mg/Ca, Mn/Ca, Al/Ca, Fe/Ca, U/Ca and U/Mn, were measured on the benthic foraminifer Uvigerina spp. For most samples the Uvigerina spp. Al/Ca and Fe/Ca ratios were below the limit of detection (LOD), at 4.7 µmol/mol and 2.1 µmol/mol, respectively. The bottom water temperature (°C) was calculated from benthic foraminifera Mg/Ca ratios using the calibration of Elderfield et al. (2010). Trace element analyses on the planktic foraminifer Globigerina bulloides include Mn/Ca, U/Ca and U/Mn ratios. To determine the uncertainty of our analyses, ten full replicates of the planktic foraminifer G. bulloides were analyzed. Trace element ratios were measured at the Institute of Geosciences at Kiel University (Kiel, Germany) using an ARCOS Spectro inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometer (ICP-OES; for Mg/Ca) and an Agilent 7900 inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometer (ICP-MS; for Al/Ca, Mn/Ca, Fe/Ca and U/Ca).