Chinese toy company Pop Mart saw sales soar after launching mini Labubu dolls in August. Driven by strong international performance, the company’s global revenue rose about 250% year-on-year in the third quarter. In the U.S., sales soared more than 1,200%, while European revenue surged by over 700%, according to the…
Kazakhstan outpaces many developed countries in generosity, reports Ranking.kz. The Charities Aid Foundation notes that Kazakhstani residents donate an average of 1.2% of their income to charity. This achievement places the country 30th worldwide — ahead of the U.S., Japan and Russia. This achievement is highlighted in the World Giving…
On Oct. 21, South Korea’s carmaker Kia opened its second complete knock-down assembly plant in Kazakhstan’s Kostanay, aiming to strengthen its position in Central Asia, Yonhap reported. The official ceremony of the plant opening was attended by Kia President Song Ho-sung, Kazakh First Deputy Prime Minister Roman Sklyar, senior government…
The U.S. and Australia have signed a critical minerals partnership designed to reduce U.S. reliance on China and boost investments in the Australian mining sector, according to Reuters. Under the agreement, announced by U.S. President Donald Trump and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, each nation will invest $1 billion over…
Kazakhstan is considering the possibility of its state-owned companies entering the world’s largest stock exchange — the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), as reported by Primeminister.kz following a delegation visit led by Minister of National Economy Serik Zhumangarin to the exchange during the annual meetings of the IMF and the…
L’Oréal will acquire Kering’s luxury beauty portfolio for €4 billion, boosting its standing in high-end cosmetics and fragrances, according to Euronews. The deal grants L’Oréal a 50-year license for Kering’s leading fashion houses, including Gucci, Bottega Veneta and Balenciaga, and brings the niche fragrance brand Creed under L’Oréal’s ownership. Kering…
China’s economy expanded at a slower pace in the third quarter, weighed down by continued weakness in the property sector and renewed friction in trade relations with the U.S., according to the BBC. Official data released Monday showed China’s GDP rising 4.8% year-on-year in the three months ending September —…
A global uranium deficit — where demand exceeds supply — could emerge by 2030 as new nuclear power plants are built rapidly, according to Meirzhan Yussupov, CEO of Kazakhstan’s Kazatomprom. Yussupov made the remarks during a meeting with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. He said two factors — AI development and rising…
A 1.1 billion tenge (about $2 million) securitized bond issue has been listed on the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE). The transaction was arranged by Freedom Broker. It marks the first securitization on Kazakhstan’s organized market in seven years. The securities are available to retail investors. How the deal was structured…
Several of Kazakhstan’s largest banks have suspended mortgage lending after the central bank raised the base rate to 18%, except Freedom Bank and Otbasy Bank, which specializes in housing savings and offers mortgages at preferential rates. Halyk Bank, Nurbank and ForteBank have temporarily suspended their mortgage programs. Bank CenterCredit continues…
LVMH posted a 1% increase in third-quarter sales, buoyed by stronger spending in China and other Asian markets, excluding Japan. The world’s largest luxury group reported «noticeable» improvement in Asia, revealing positive overall results for the first time in 2025, according to Reuters. Quarterly revenue rose to $21.17 billion, beating…
China is shifting toward a more assertive strategy with the U.S., blending offense and defense, according to Gu Qingyang, associate professor at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy. Although both Beijing and Washington had shown signs of easing tensions in recent months, that optimism faded quickly after China’s…
Google plans to build a major artificial intelligence (AI) hub in southern India, marking its largest such project outside the U.S., CNBC reported. Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian announced that the company will invest $15 billion in the project over the next five years. The new data center will help…
Zaman Bank, Kazakhstan’s Islamic bank, rolled out its first retail product this year — unsecured Islamic consumer loans with a maximum loan amount of 3 million tenge (about $5,500) — while progress on Islamic mortgages remains to be seen, according to the bank’s CEO Gulfairuz Assayeva. Notably, the bank made…
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences on Monday awarded the 2025 Sveriges Riksbank (Sweden’s central bank) Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel to American-Israeli economic historian Joel Mokyr and economists Philippe Aghion of France and Peter Howitt of Canada. The three were honored for advancing the understanding…
China has accused the U.S. of «double standards» after President Donald Trump threatened to impose an additional 100% tariff on Chinese imports. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce said such actions could prompt «countermeasures,» adding that China «is not afraid» of a potential trade conflict, according to the BBC. The comments…
The Dutch government has made what it describes as a rare move to step in at Nexperia, a China-owned semiconductor manufacturer based in the Netherlands. Officials say they acted because of risks to national and European economic security, according to the BBC. Following this decision, officials invoked the Goods Availability…
On Oct. 10, Kazakhstan’s National Bank raised its base rate by 1.5 percentage points (p.p.) to 18%, with a range of +/–1 p.p. The previous level of 16.5% was set in March 2025 and maintained following the bank’s Monetary Policy Committee meetings in April, June, July and August. The regulator…
Kazakhstan is introducing a temporary permitting procedure for the import of slot machines, a measure aimed at combating illegal and problem gambling, the government’s press office reported. Under the new rules, only organizations holding a state gambling license will be allowed to import slot machines. Last summer, Kazakhstan tightened gambling…
Kazakhstan’s stock market capitalization reached 39.6 trillion tenge (about $72 billion) as of Sept. 1, 2025. The figure grew 5.1% in August and 20.4% year to date. Shares of companies listed on the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE) index — Kaspi.kz (+6.6%), Kazatomprom (+8.7%) and ForteBank (+15.5%) — were the main…
China has imposed new restrictions on exports of rare earth elements. These materials are key to advanced technologies. The move expands China’s control over a supply chain vital to global manufacturing, as the country produces about 61% of the world’s rare earth supply and handles over 90% of the industry’s…
The value of Kazakhstan’s net international reserves reached $55.5 billion at the end of September 2025, according to data released by the National Bank. Soaring gold prices played a major role in the increase. The reserves increased by $3.3 billion (6.3%) month-on-month. Since the start of the year, they have…
Japan’s university admissions process includes an element that often surprises outsiders — the practice of charging «multiple enrollment fees,» a recent report on Eastasiaforum.org highlighted. At many private institutions, students who receive an acceptance offer must pay a nonrefundable enrollment fee, typically ranging from $1,360 to $2,040. This payment is…
Forbes Kazakhstan ranked billionaire and owner of ForteBank, Bulat Utemuratov, as the most influential businessman in Kazakhstan in 2025. According to the ranking, he climbed from third place last year. The top five includes: Vyacheslav Kim, co-founder of Kaspi.kz and owner of Alatau City Bank (retained position); Nurlan Smagulov, owner…
