News

ERG, a subsidiary of the Eurasian Group (registered in Luxemburg), is planning to kick off exports of hot briquetted iron (HBI) to China starting from 2026, Serik Shakhazhanov, CEO of the Eurasian Group said.

According to the executive, the company has already signed an offtake contract with the Chinese side. In order to deliver its business obligation on the export, the Eurasian Group invested roughly $1 billion into the project.

ERG isn’t the only metallurgic company from the CIS that want to work with the Chinese. Russian Metalloinvest controlled by 69-year-old Alisher Usmanov (122nd place in the Forbes Billionaires list...

As the office of Kazakhstan’s prime minister reported, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is planning to open in Almaty a regional center for Caucasus, Central Asia and Mongolia.

This statement followed the negotiations between Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov and Nicolas Blancher, head of the IMF Mission for Kazakhstan.

According to Smailov, the country’s economy continues to demonstrate positive results. Over the period from January to April, it grew by 5%. In 2022, Kazakhstan reported $28 billion of foreign direct investments, a record high for the past decade.

He also added that the cabinet is conducting a large-scale assessment of the...

Minister of Trade and Integration Serik Zhumangarin has admitted that his ministry has failed in providing local exporters with official support. The minister made this statement in response to a question by MP Nikolay Arsyutin.

In his request, Arsyutin mentioned $1.3 million that was supposed to be used as subsidies to cover banking interest associated with loans issued to those foreign companies that buy products from Kazakhstan. This money should have also been used to subsidize leasing payments from foreign clients for Kazakhstani leasing companies.

As the MP noted, this money never reached their recipients, which the cabinet itself confirmed.

Kazakhstani banks have started to block payments for servers, microchips, processors, telecommunication equipment and other electronics from Russian entities, according to Kommersant.

As a result, Russian suppliers are looking for alternative payment methods. They are also trying to hide sensitive components under unmatched commodity codes. It is expected that the new practice will cause a deficit of electronics in Russia within half a year.

As Kommersant reported, Kazakhstani banks are probably worrying about a new package of U.S. sanctions that may be targeted at banks cooperating with Russia. These new restrictions can be effectively applied against providing money, goods and...

On May 3, 2023, the Asian Continental Chess Championship kicked off in Almaty, Kazakhstan. With a prize fund of $100,000 in total, winners are expected to receive $3,000 each in blitz and $10,000, $8,000 and $7,000 for the top three places in classical chess for men. In the women’s category, these awards are $8,000, $6,000 and $4,000, respectively, according to Gulmira Dauletova, executive director of the Kazakhstan Chess Federation (KCF).

The press conference was opened by KCF President Timur Turlov, who is also CEO of Freedom Holding Corp.

«We are very pleased and proud that we...

Kazakhstan has been ranked sixth in Europe in terms of availability of electricity with $0.038 per kilowatt-hour. An average monthly salary in Kazakhstan is enough to buy about 16,900 kilowatts-hours, according to the RIA Novosti news agency.

Iceland, the Netherlands and Liechtenstein are the leaders in the rating, according to the survey.

Iceland is the top-ranked country in Europe in terms of the availability of electricity for the people. Its residents can buy more than 30,000 kilowatt-hours on average thanks to the relatively low cost of electricity on the island and one of the highest incomes in Europe, experts said.

The International Cycling Union (UCI) has disqualified Savelii Laptev, a Russian national and member of the Kazakhstan cycling team Astana Qazaqstan Development Team, from competitions in Europe. He’s been accused of supporting Russian aggression against Ukraine, the TASS news agency reported.

UCI requires cyclists from Russia and Belarus to compete under a neutral flag. The organization has warned that even one word of support for the Russian invasion of Ukraine would be enough to disqualify any athlete from these countries.

According to Grigoriy Laptev, father of the 18-year-old cyclist, his son has been disqualified because he allegedly liked posts on...

Chinese companies are ready to cooperate with Kazakhstan in the sphere of coal chemistry. For example, they are interested in the production of fuel made from coal, according to Turar Zholmagambetov, deputy head of the industrial development committee under the Ministry of Industry and Infrastructural Development.

«We can produce synthetic oil from coal. For example, we need 40 million tons of coal to produce the 20 million tons of oil that our refineries can currently reprocess,» he told Kursiv while commenting on details of potential cooperation with the Chinese in the sphere of coal chemistry.

According to Armen Grogoryan, secretary of the Security Council of Armenia, the country’s membership in the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) gives «some troubles.»

«Even though the Armenian membership in the CSTO gives us some troubles, it doesn’t prevent us from cooperating with other nations. We have been cooperating with Western partners in the sphere of security for years,» Grogoryan told an Armenian Public TV channel.

The official said that his country reported three attacks from Azerbaijan since 2020. However, the CSTO has never given a hand.

According to the Interfax news agency, CSTO offered...

The central election commission of Uzbekistan has registered four candidates who are going to run for the presidency.

According to Gazeta.uz, each of the candidates has been registered from a certain political party: Shavkat Mirziyoyev from the Uzbekistan Liberal Democratic Party, Ulugbek Inoyatov from the People’s Democratic Party of Uzbekistan, Robakhon Makhmudova from the Social Democratic Party Adolat and Abdushukur Khamzaev from the Ecological Party.

On the other hand, the Milliy Tiklanish Democratic Party of Uzbekistan said it won’t nominate a candidate but rather support Mirziyoyev, the current president.

The elections campaign will start on June 7, while the elections...

According to Marat Karabayev, minister of industry and infrastructural development in Kazakhstan, companies that have been conducting geological exploration at a site for a while will get the opportunity to continue this work with a right for extraction.

«We are focusing our attention on modern methods of geological exploration. One of the potential novelties we are discussing is the issue of mineral license. We are now suggesting that a company involved in geological exploration must also be able to get a mineral license to continue exploration and extracting operations on a certain site. We are discussing...

The two sides have significantly strengthened their cooperation

The portfolio of joint projects by Uzbekistan and the World Bank has grown threefold since the beginning of bilateral cooperation. By 2026, the two sides are going to launch new projects worth $4 billion, according to the press service of the president of Uzbekistan.

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev met with Vice President of the Europe and Central Asia Region at the World Bank Antonella Bassani to discuss new ways to expand cooperation between Uzbekistan and the World Bank in order to promote social and economic reforms in the country.

Currently, Uzbekistan and the...

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev met with President of the European Council Charles Michel during the European Union – Central Asia Summit, which is taking place in Kyrgyzstan, and said that cooperation with the EU is a top priority for Kazakhstan.

The two officials have also exchanged their opinions on the global and regional agenda.

«During the meeting with Charles Michel President Tokayev underlined that the strategic partnership between Kazakhstan and the EU takes top priority. The Enhanced Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between Kazakhstan and the EU was a good start for this new extended cooperation,» the president’s...

According to data from the National Bank, Kazakhstan’s international reserves grew by 1.8% to $96.3 billion in April 2023. In March, this rate was 2.9%. Since the beginning of the year, the growth has been about 6%.

This growth was driven by a 3.8% increase in gross international reserves on a month-on-month (m/m) basis. The National Fund also reported an increase in its assets to $58.7 billion (+0.5%) in April.

However, the regulator’s assets now include less gold, as the metal’s share in the National Bank’s reserves declined by 3.7% m/m to $20.3 billion. On the other hand, assets nominated...

Polymetal, the biggest Russian producer of silver and gold, is going to redomiciliate its business in Kazakhstan. The move has recently been approved by 92% of shareholders of the company after nine months of discussions, according to the Qazaqstan Association of Minority Shareholders’ channel on Telegram.

As of today, the company is still registered with Jersey Island.

The first reports about the possible redomiciliation of Polymetal to the Astana International Financial Center (AIFC) appeared last fall. At the time, the company also reported that it postponed the Pacific Hydrometallurgical Plant project in the Khabarovsk Krai, Russia.

Later, Vitaly Nesis, CEO...

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which is responsible for attracting foreign investments, has invited 401 international companies to relocate their business from Russia to Kazakhstan. All these companies previously announced their intention to leave Russia, according to Almas Aydarov, deputy foreign minister of Kazakhstan. While speaking to the members of the Senate, he reported that 67 companies agreed to relocate and 25 businesses have already done so.

The MFA never mentioned China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC) and Clariant, the Swiss producer of chemical products, as companies that plan to relocate their offices to Kazakhstan. However, both companies have done so...

According to Peter Foster, president and CEO of the Air Astana airline, the company is planning to obtain three long-rage Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft over 2025-2026.

«Currently, we have 43 aircraft with an average age of 4.3 years. We are expecting seven additional aircraft by the end of this year. Moreover, our fleet is expected to be expanded to 64 aircraft including three long-range Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft. Two of them will be delivered in 2025 and one in 2026,» Foster said.

He also reported that Air Astana and its subsidiary FlyArystan operate more than...

Kazakhstan is going to increase its stake in the Eurasian Development Bank (EDB) by 12.71% up to 50%, according to Minister of Finance Yerulan Zhamaubayev.

In January 2023, Kazakhstan acquired a 4.29% stake in EDB from Russia for about $44.9 million. As a result, Kazakhstan’s stake has increased from 33% to 37.2%. At the time Zhamaubayev said that the exact sum of the deal would be available once the 2024 budget is done. He also noted that the government would pay in installments of five million a year to reduce the burden on the state budget.

Shigeo Katsu is going to resign from the office of the president of Nazarbayev University (NU) on June 15. Ilesanmi Adesida will be the acting president of the NU after that.

«After 13 years of service, President Katsu announced his resignation from the office. The university deeply appreciates President Katsu for his visionary and effective management, which have helped NU to become the first Kazakhstani university to meet high international standards,» NU said in a statement.

Katsu is a member of the board of regents for NU, Nazarbayev Intellectual Schools and Nazarbayev Foundation. Once the...

Kazakhstan and the U.K. are going to increase flight connectivity between the two countries. Authorized agencies of the two countries are the Civil Aviation Committee (CAC) under the Ministry of Industry and Infrastructural Development of Kazakhstan and the British Department for Transport. They have already negotiated the issue.

«The flight frequency between Almaty and Astana on the one hand and any destination in the U.K. on the other hand will be increased to seven flights a week. The cargo traffic also will be expanded to seven flights a week on an irregular basis, including the fifth...

Kazakhstan has no intention and doesn’t plan to create or join any union states, according to Ruslan Zheldibay, the official spokesperson for the president of Kazakhstan.

«As you probably know President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev took part in the second Eurasian Economic Summit in Moscow recently. During the meeting, the president made some statements that sparked a lot of discussion among the expert community. In this regard, I’d like to note that the key message by the president was the following: the process of integration within the EEU can and should follow only the economic path. If someone...

Authorities in Armenia and Azerbaijan agreed to recognize the territorial integrity of each other. This statement was made during the meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council in Moscow on May 25.

«We have reached an agreement and I think it’s safe to say that we are on our way to the settlement of our relations,» Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said.

In turn, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev also confirmed that his country has no territorial claims to Armenia.

«Given that Armenia has recognized Karabakh as a part of Azerbaijan we...

On May 26, the National Bank of Kazakhstan revised its inflation forecast upwards.

«Taking into account the expected price increase for utilities and fuel as well as high fiscal stimulus, a factor that was never taken into account before, we have revised our forecast,» the regulator said in a statement.

According to the updated forecast by the National Bank, the annual inflation is going to reach 11% to 14% in 2023, 9% to 11% in 2024 and 5.5% to 7.5% in 2025. The regulator’s target is 4% to 5%.

The National Bank assesses the indirect...

The Almaty police department has opened a criminal case against an unidentified taxi driver from Almaty who ripped off two foreigners for $800. Now, he is accused of extortion.

According to the police, on May 21, 2023, the taxi driver who worked in the Almaty airport, offered his service to two Indian nationals. Initially, he promised to give them a ride for $2.25 but when they reached their destination, he demanded that the foreigners pay him about $1,100. Eventually, they negotiated a «discount» and paid $800.

«Police officers detained a 27-year-old male who is currently accused of extortion,» the police...