News

The BBC has released its 2024 list of the world’s 100 most inspiring and influential women. Notably, the list includes two women from Central Asia — one from Kyrgyzstan and one from Uzbekistan. Unfortunately, no women from Kazakhstan were featured. Kursiv LifeStyle highlights some of the most remarkable women recognized this year.

As the compilers of the list note, 2024 has been a particularly challenging year for women in many parts of the world.

«The theme of the 2024 list is ‘resilience,’ and BBC 100 Women acknowledges the toll this year has taken on women around...

Transshipment 1 plans to build a storage facility for 500,000 tons of liquid reactive chemicals, including sulfuric acid, which is essential for uranium production and currently in short supply in Kazakhstan. The company is controlled by Singaporean Carbon Global Tech Pte. Ltd. and Anuar Musakhan, a Kazakhstani citizen.

«This project is designed for the storage and transportation of liquid reactive chemicals and includes a railway car unloading system, a sulfuric acid storage system, a liquid reactive chemicals truck loading system, as well as necessary electrical and control devices, and safety systems,» the company said in...

According to official statistics, the share of the shadow economy in Kazakhstan has continued to decline for seven consecutive years. By the end of 2023, the Bureau of National Statistics (BNS) recorded a decrease of 1.26 percentage points (p.p.), bringing it to 17.52% of GDP. However, the shrinking of the shadow economy is a non-linear process: while there have been successes in the trade sector, where the non-observed economy shrank by more than 5 p.p., the indicator increased in the education and healthcare sectors.

Shadow economy under scrutiny

Kazakhstan’s authorities have repeatedly emphasized the importance of bringing the economy...

Despite tensions in the Golan Heights, the area remains stable, according to Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Defense. The ministry noted that any decision regarding the evacuation of Kazakhstani peacekeepers would be considered, if necessary, by UN leadership upon the recommendation of the mission command.

«The mission personnel are performing their duties in accordance with the mandate. Authorized representatives of the UN Disengagement Observer Force remain in constant communication with both the Syrian and Israeli sides,» the ministry stated.

The ministry also highlighted that safety measures for the servicemen have already been put in place. Additionally, it...

The ex-leader of Syria, Bashar al-Assad, who fled the country after opposition forces seized Damascus, has received political asylum in Russia for himself and members of his family, as reported by the TASS news agency, citing a source familiar with the matter in the Kremlin.

«President of Syria Assad and his family members have arrived in Moscow. Russia has granted them political asylum on humanitarian grounds,» the media outlet reported.

The source also stated that leaders of the Syrian opposition assured Russian authorities that there is no threat to Russian military bases and diplomatic facilities...

From Dec. 4 to 6, a Kazakhstani delegation led by Energy Minister Almasadam Satkaliyev visited France for talks with leading French atomic companies, which expressed their readiness to support the nuclear power plant (NPP) project in Kazakhstan.

Kazakhstani officials met with representatives from Électricité de France (EDF), a French operator of nuclear plants; Framatome, an NPP equipment producer; and Arabelle Solutions, a supplier of turbine equipment. The delegation also met with Assystem, a French company specializing in project management and digital solutions for infrastructure facilities, including NPPs.

Kazakhstani officials also visited a crisis center of the Institute for Radiation Protection...

The Astana International Exchange (AIX) has reported the placement of Kazakhstan’s first Sukuk, valued at around $9.6 million. These Islamic financial certificates, with a maturity of three years and a 20% coupon rate, have been issued by a subsidiary of the Gamma-T servicing company.

Sukuk have been placed within a 10-year bond program worth $19.2 million. The first tranche, structured under the Ijarah principle, was launched on Dec. 5. The total number of securities with a nominal value of $960 per piece is 10,000.

Ijarah Sukuk present a type of secured coupon bond. The company that wants to allocate funds...

The Executive Office of the President of Kazakhstan has rejected a proposal prepared by members of parliament to euthanize stray animals after 15 to 60 days in captivity. The document was sent back for revision, according to Informburo, citing Gulmira Sabdenbek, deputy head of the Social and Economic Policy Department under the Executive Office of the President.

«Regarding the amendments proposed by members of parliament, the presidential administration has not supported them conceptually and has sent them back for revision. However, we are open to constructive dialogue to strengthen the current legislation,» she said.

The...

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and U.S. President-elect Donald Trump have talked via phone and shared their visions on the international agenda. They also discussed a wide range of issues related to the partnership between the two countries.

«Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has congratulated Donald Trump on being elected president of the U.S. The two officials have confirmed their mutual commitments to the intense development of the strategic partnership in trade, investments and nuclear nonproliferation,» the press service of Kazakhstan’s president reported.

According to the press service, during the phone conversation, Tokayev informed Trump about Kazakhstan’s position on current...

UNESCO has included Kazakh national tradition Betashar in its List of Intangible Cultural Heritage, Kazakhstan’s State Counsellor Erlan Karin reported. 

The inclusion of this rite in the cultural heritage list was announced during the session held in Paraguay.

«During the session of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in Asunción, one of the ancient Kazakh rites, Betashar, was inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity,» Karin reported.

Betashar is a traditional Kazakh wedding ritual in which the bride is introduced to the groom’s relatives...

The trading volume on the International Trading System (ITS) platform reached a record high of $66 million in November, marking a 71% ($27.5 million) rise compared to the previous month. Meanwhile, the same indicator for the Astana International Exchange (AIX) decreased by 30.8% month-on-month to $121 million.

ITS CEO Chingiz Kanapyanov highlighted that November’s growth in trading volume was fueled by increased clientele and new financial instruments.

«We expect that trading volume will continue to grow and the trading platform will keep expanding its line of financial instruments,» Kanapyanov noted.

The 10 most popular assets...

Every fifth resident of Kazakhstan is considering leaving the country, though not everyone can afford to do so. Meanwhile, 78.5% of respondents have no plans to leave the country any time soon, according to a recent survey conducted by the Demoscope Bureau.

«Every fifth respondent (21%) is thinking about moving out of the country. Of these, 6.9% intend to leave within the next 2 to 3 years, 5.6% plan to move but currently lack the means and 8.4% are considering relocating under certain circumstances. At the same time, 78.5% of respondents have no intention of leaving...

To clarify what types of financial instruments are available to non-accredited (unqualified) Kazakhstani investors, Kursiv.media reached out to Kazakhstan’s Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market (ARDFM) for comment. According to the agency, the law permits non-accredited investors to purchase structured notes that meet strict rating and listing requirements.

Financial instruments available exclusively to accredited (qualified) investors include:

Kazakhstani authorities are allegedly exploring alternative solutions to continue launching Proton-M expendable launch vehicles (ELVs), which run on toxic fuel, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome after 2025. According to MP Aidos Sarym, Kazakhstan seeks to secure environmental safety guarantees, while the Russian space agency Roscosmos doubts whether it will continue the launches. 

«Over the years, our people have changed as they have become more environmentally conscious. People want safety guarantees as well as clear explanations about what the government plans to do to address potential damage in case of emergency. We can’t discuss any future launches until...

Kazakhstan’s Food Contract Corporation (FCC), a state-owned company that regulates the grain market, plans to reduce its investments in the fixed capital of its grain terminal at the port of Aktau, citing Russia’s actions as the reason. The draft decree outlining this decision was published on the Legalacts.egov.kz portal.

The changes will impact investments in the fixed capital of the Ak Biday Terminal. The FCC explained that, due to the current geopolitical situation, grain shipments through terminals at the port of Aktau to Iran have sharply declined.

This decline is attributed to Russia redirecting its export shipments to Iran via...

LC Waikiki, a prominent retailer from Turkey, is building a new logistics center worth $12 million, Kazakh Invest reported. This facility will serve as a distribution hub in Central Asia.

Representatives of LC Waikiki revealed some details of the project during a meeting with Gabidulla Ospankulov, chair of the Investment Committee of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Ospankulov also met with representatives of other Turkish companies. For example, S Sistem Lojistik has been constructing a logistics hub in the Aktobe region in conjunction with KazPost. The two sides have already signed a road map, as the Turkish company has pledged...

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has stated that the country no longer considers itself a member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) and has no intention of returning to membership.

«We said that we are suspending our participation in the organization. We do not participate in the preparation of documents or discussions; we do not propose anything and do not respond to suggestions from others. We do not use the right of veto. In fact, we consider ourselves outside the CSTO. I think the point of no return has already been passed,» Pashinyan said, as...

Kazakhstan’s authorities will send annual SMS alerts to citizens about the risks and penalties associated with religious extremism, according to a draft decree by the Ministry of Digital Development published on the Legalacts.egov.kz portal. The draft is open for public discussion until Dec. 13.

The text messages will remind recipients of penalties outlined in the Administrative Code for offenses such as:

The latest PMI® data by Freedom Holding Corp. and S&P Global indicated a renewed rise in new business received at Kazakh service providers in November, thereby overturning the fall experienced in the month prior. Similarly, a fresh rise in activity was also observed in the latest survey period.

Meanwhile, cost pressures remained subdued, enabling firms to pursue more competitive pricing strategies. Average output charges for Kazakh services increased at the slowest pace since December 2020.

The headline figure is the Business Activity Index. This is calculated from a single question that asks for changes in the volume of business...

A new cotton fiber manufacturing factory has been established in the Maktaaral district of the Turkestan region. The facility is expected to export its products to China, Turkey, Europe, Tajikistan, Iran and Kyrgyzstan. It is set to undertake major projects worth approximately $133.5 million through 2030.

The factory’s capacity is 80,000 tons of cotton fiber per year. According to initial plans, the facility is set to process up to 600 tons of raw cotton per day. Since the start of the cotton harvesting campaign, the factory has already processed 41,000 tons. It is expected that the plant will produce around...

Kazakhstan has decided to seriously engage in preserving Lake Balkhash, near which the construction of a nuclear power plant (NPP) is planned. Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Water Resources has already signed an agreement with France, which is expected to allocate a €1.35 million grant for studying the lake. France has also pledged to conduct extensive research on the lake basin and develop a preservation plan for the body of water.

«The Ministry of Water Resources, the French Development Agency and the French Geological Survey have signed a trilateral cooperation agreement… The document includes a €1.35 million grant...

Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Trade and Integration has proposed imposing a $60-per-ton export duty on additional types of oil products to boost budget revenues, according to a draft order published on the Legalacts.egov.kz portal. The draft is open for public comments until Dec. 13.

«To replenish the budget of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Ministry of Finance has proposed establishing export customs duties on approximately 320 commodity items. Following this proposal, we have approved the establishment of export duties on hydrocarbon mixtures to identify additional budgetary revenue sources,» the Ministry of Trade stated.

The ministry aims...

Between January and November 2024, Kazakhstan’s oil refineries processed 16.7 million tons of oil, marking a 3.6% increase year-on-year (YoY), according to the Ministry of Energy.

During this period, oil product output also increased:

The ministry reported that oil refineries nationwide are operating smoothly nationwide, ensuring uninterrupted shipments and consistently replenishing fuel and lubricant stocks.

KazMunayGas (KMG), Kazakhstan’s state-owned oil company, reported a 5.2% decline in oil refining during the period from January...

Between January and November 2024, Russia increased its pipeline gas exports to Europe to 29.3 billion cubic meters (bcm), a 15% rise year-on-year (YoY), according to data from Gazprom, Russia’s state-owned gas giant, and the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas (ENTSOG).

During the same period in 2023, Russia’s pipeline gas deliveries to Europe totaled approximately 25.5 bcm. By the end of 2023, total pipeline gas exports to Europe stood at around 28.15 bcm.

Meanwhile, the cost of January futures at the Title Transfer Facility (TTF) in the Netherlands rose by 1.514%, reaching €48.535 per megawatt-hour (MWh). Gas...