Karaganda region has opened its "personal office" in China - a representative office based on QazTrade infrastructure in Urumqi.

During the working trip of regional akim Ermaganbeta Bulekpaeva to China, a tripartite memorandum was signed between Akimatom, SPK "Saryarka" and QazTrade. After that, the regional representative office was opened in the QazTrade office and showroom in Urumqi.

"This solution is not simply an extension of external relations. It changes the approach to work with the world's largest market and forms a new standard for Kazakhstan's regional presence in China. Trade between Kazakhstan and China is growing, but the potential of the regions is not fully revealed. "Cooperation of regional productions strengthens Kazakhstan's country presence in China," says General Director of QazTrade Aitmuhammed Aldazharov.

In January-October 2025, mutual trade between Kazakhstan and China amounted to $39.8 billion, increasing by 8.8% compared to the same period in 2024.
• Exports: $15.8 billion (+18%)
• Imports: $24.0 billion (+3.6%)
• Trade balance: improved from -$9.8 billion to -$8.2 billion

Why this step became iconic

Despite the active growth of trade between Kazakhstan and China, regional exports have been developing sporadically for a long time. The company entered the Chinese market sporadically, without systematic support on the spot. Most often, promising niches were occupied by large or foreign players.

New competition between the regions of Kazakhstan

Now opening a representative office in Urumqi creates a new reality:
• The best niche borrowers will be the first to go to China. Polki, distributor and investors are distributed among early players.
• Chinese investors choose regions with a real presence. For them, the office is an indicator of seriousness of intentions and willingness to work for a long time.
• Regional export becomes an independent task. Now each region can form its share of the Chinese market through its own representative office.

Erkhan Yerkin, the official representative of QazTrade in China, has already told what is important to do in other regions:
• use the infrastructure and support of QazTrade;
• determine the export portfolio: top-20 goods, ready-made products, volume, certification;
• to form high-quality investment projects for submission to Chinese partners;
• transitions from formal visits to effective B2B missions with clear KPIs.

In the future, it is planned to scale this model to other socio-entrepreneurial corporations and regions of Kazakhstan to strengthen the export potential of the regions. The opening of the representative office of SPK "Saryarka" is not a one-time action, but the beginning of a new model of regional integration of Kazakhstan into the Chinese market.

China is moving to a decentralized model of trade, where provinces and cities play a key role, forming their own procurement plans and working directly with foreign suppliers. In order for the region of Kazakhstan to participate in these processes, it needs a physical presence in the PRC, a local negotiation channel, access to procurement structures and operational work with local partners.

Karaganda region has already integrated into this new architecture of cooperation, setting the pace for other regions. Who will join next?

Source : https://www.gov.kz/memleket/entities/mti/press/news/details/1122126?lang=kk