Elvira Kadyrova
Kazakhstan aims to increase the volume of non-oil exports to neighboring countries by 1.5 times by 2022. The statement came from the Vice-Minister of trade and integration of the country Kairat Torebayev.
In early September, the president of Kazakhstan instructed the ministry of trade and integration to ensure favorable conditions for the promotion of Kazakh export goods.
According to the Vice-Minister, first of all, it regards to the markets of the border countries – Russia, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and China, with which all legal conditions have been created for fruitful cross-border cooperation.
Kazakhstan is ready to increase exports to Turkmenistan by US $ 123.1 million, said Torebayev. The most perspective export items are iron rods, confectionery, margarine, sunflower, safflower oil, beef, milk and cream, canned vegetables, accumulators, timber, cable production, shut-off valves, spackling materials, ironwire, splint-slabplates, polypropylene, aluminum bars and shapes, slag wool.
Totally, Kazakh producers have a good potential to increase exports to Turkmenistan on 48 kinds of export goods.
Kazakhstan’s national export strategy provides for a number of significant measures to promote non-primary goods and services. As Torebayev promised, concessional lending, pre-export and export financing will be available for export-oriented projects of the non-resource sector. It is also planned to reimburse transportation costs.
“We attach great importance to the deepening of trade and economic ties. Given the availability of transport infrastructure and a common border, there is a great potential for further strengthening of mutually beneficial cooperation,” said the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Askar Mamin during a meeting with the president of Turkmenistan in May this year in Ashgabat.
Energy, agriculture, transport and communications are promising areas of Turkmen-Kazakh cooperation.
In 2018, Turkmenistan’s trade turnover with Kazakhstan amounted to US $ 98.1 million. Exports from Kazakhstan to Turkmenistan grew by 56.3% to US $ 86.6 million, while imports declined by 70.8% to US $ 12.9 million. /// nCa, 7 October 2019