Aidar Abildabekov, Vice Minister of Trade and Integration of the Republic of Kazakhstan, met with Khurram Teshabayev, Deputy Minister of Investment, Industry, and Trade of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

Uzbekistan remains one of Kazakhstan's priority trading partners in Central Asia. The two sides are consistently working to achieve the mutual trade target of $10 billion. From January to August 2025, trade turnover reached $3 billion, an 18.5% increase compared to the same period last year. Kazakhstan's exports totaled $2.2 billion, an increase of 26.7%, and the trade surplus reached $1.4 billion.

An additional positive indicator was the expansion of Kazakhstan's high-value-added exports, including in metallurgy, petrochemicals, mechanical engineering, and agriculture. Uzbekistan has been presented with a list of 40 promising products worth over $550 million. Active work is underway to utilize export acceleration and trade finance tools, allowing companies to offer more competitive terms to their Uzbek partners.

Particular attention is being paid to the joint implementation of investment projects. Thirty-four projects worth $4.4 billion and seven trade contracts worth $2.6 billion are currently under development. Active work is underway to update the roadmap, launch new production facilities, and remove certain administrative barriers. Kazakhstan proposes focusing on the implementation of those projects that have reached the highest level of readiness.

"Bilateral trade is growing in the agricultural sector. In the first eight months of 2025, agricultural trade increased by 27.6%, reaching $1.3 billion. Steady growth is being observed in the export of Kazakhstani grain, flour, meat, sugar, and other goods. "The digital integration of phytosanitary systems is underway through the ePhyto platform, which will ensure traceability and eliminate potential risks in mutual deliveries," noted Aidar Abildabekov, Vice Minister of Trade and Integration of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

During his visit, Aidar Abildabekov also visited the construction site of the International Center for Industrial Cooperation "Central Asia," which is being implemented on the Kazakh-Uzbek border. The ICIC project is a strategic initiative of the two countries in industrial cooperation and aims to create a unified production and logistics platform.

The frameworks of eight production buildings have been installed at the site, and construction and infrastructure work is ongoing. Contracts are being signed with investors from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and third countries in the fields of textiles, agricultural processing, logistics, and eco-technologies.

The Kazakh side also supports the initiative to create a Joint Logistics Strategy, including the development of transit routes through Afghanistan. Dialogue is underway to remove remaining trade barriers and create favorable conditions for mutual market access.

The next, 22nd meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission on Bilateral Cooperation will be held in Khiva on October 22–23 of this year. The agenda includes coordinating new initiatives, discussing the status of existing projects, and developing new growth opportunities.

Source : https://www.gov.kz/memleket/entities/mti/press/news/details/1082978?lang=kk