News

The National Bank of Kazakhstan has opted to keep the base rate at the previous level of 16.75%. This rate hasn’t changed since December 2022.

According to the regulator, its decision on the base rate was driven by the risk of a price surge that still exists and high inflation expectations by businesses and the population. In March, Kazakhstan’s government reported 18.1% of inflation on a year-on-year basis.

Even though there are some signs of the inflation slowing down, it is too early to say whether this trend is stable. For instance, there are still a variety of internal pro-inflationary...

Kcell, a mobile operator in Kazakhstan that runs the well-known brands Kcell and Active, has reached a deal with Ericsson. Under the deal, the Swedish telecommunication hardware producer will supply Kcell with 5G equipment, as the operator has won a bid related to the development of the new mobile communication standard in Kazakhstan, according to the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE).

In fact, the two sides signed three agreements. Although they haven’t revealed any details of the deal, a Kcell representative said that the operator’s financial liabilities under the arrangement are equal to 26% of its owned capital. As of December...

PetroKazakhstan Oil Products LLP (PKOP), also known as the Shymkent refinery, has completed the overhaul it started on March 15, according to KazMunayGaz, the national oil company that controls the factory.

«On April 7, Shymkent refinery completed preventive maintenance, which was expected to last from March 15 to April 8 this year. However, the PKOP has managed to complete the maintenance one day before the deadline and the facility has already started its operations,» the oil company said in a statement.

In April, the oil refinery is expected to process 366,000 tons of crude oil...

What is a failure for a startup? It is not just the closure of a business as you probably thought but also the so-called «premature exit» when a startup owner sells it before it brings in any real money. We asked several entrepreneurs what were the main reasons that made them close or sell a startup.

Cryptocurrency fault

Paxaro Labs, a crypto market accelerator, was launched by Azat Bekmagambetov more than two years ago. In late December 2022, on New Year’s Eve, he was forced to close the project. The key reason for the move was the nonperforming business...

The Astana Office of the Mayor has discovered the areas in the city with the poorest internet connection. The authorities have been receiving a lot of criticism regarding internet connection quality. The vast majority of these complaints came from suburbs. In sixteen of them, there is no fast internet connection at all. To solve the problem, the capital city authorities have attracted $3.3 million in investments.

Moreover, the city administration has also gained support from the Ministry of Digital Development and local mobile operators.

«We have been working on providing all residents of our city with...

A batch of natural uranium has been shipped to Romania via the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR) all the way through Azerbaijan and Georgia, according to Kazatomprom.

«Kazatomprom, the national operator for the import and export of uranium, rare metals and nuclear fuel in Kazakhstan confirms it has successfully shipped natural uranium concentrate to Societatea Natională Nuclearelectrica S.A. (SNN). SNN is a state-owned energy company in Romania that produces nuclear fuel and runs the Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant, which accounts for about 20% of the energy generated in the country,» Kazatomptom said in a statement.

The Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) doesn’t see any risks in Kazakhstan’s intention to build alternative routes to circumvent Russia and CPC, according to Kairgeldy Kabyldin, who is responsible for government relations in CPC-K, a subsidiary of the CPC.

«Concerning alternative routes for CPC, of course, there are such projects but you know what – it is a very difficult task to build an alternative route for oil exports. Kazakhstan is a landlocked country. Therefore, we need to send our oil through the territory of other countries to get to the seashore. And there are loads of...

Kazakhstan should reconsider the manufacturing of oil tankers and other vessels in order to guarantee that it can meet the demand for transportation through the Caspian Sea, according to acting Minister of Energy Bolat Akchulakov.

«We haven’t bought any of the oil tankers and I believe we shouldn’t do that. We have to launch production of such vessels here in Kazakhstan,» he said, commenting on a project between KazMunayGas, a national company in Kazakhstan and Abu Dhabi Ports Group (ADP).

As Akchulakov noted, high transportation tariffs are the main obstacles that prevent Kazakhstan from developing...

Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov supported the fuel price surge as he said that the decision to increase fuel prices was tough but necessary. He also noted that liquefied gas prices may increase as well, as it is necessary to keep liquified gas producers afloat.

“This is a tough decision we should have made. If we had refused to do so, we would face a shortage of fuel,” Smailov said.

He also noted that the authorities have registered a tremendous consumption of fuel within Kazakhstan. However, it is not a secret that the country’s real fuel...

Serik Zhumangarin, deputy prime minister and minister of trade and integration of Kazakhstan said that there are hard times ahead in terms of work aimed at fighting against inflation.

«I have dealt with this task – fighting against the galloping inflation – since the moment I have been assigned to the office. We’ve done it. We can see now that the inflation rate is decreasing, so I think the cabinet has been doing quite well in this direction. However, it is too early to celebrate. Hard times ahead: April, May and early June. This is the...

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has officially appointed Murat Nurtleu new foreign minister of Kazakhstan, according to the president’s press service.

«By the president’s edict, Muran Nurtleu has been appointed deputy prime minister – minister of foreign affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan. He was discharged from the previous position of the head of the president’s office,» the press service said in a statement.

Murat Nurtleu was born in 1976. He graduated from Kazakh National University named after al-Farabi.

Over the years of his professional career, Nurtleu worked as a second secretary in the MFA’s department of Asia and Africa, as an...

Last year Kazakhstan managed to attract $28 billion of foreign direct investments (FDI) which is a record high for the past decade and a 17.7% increase compared to the $23.8 billion invested in 2021. In 2012, the FDI in Kazakhstan was about $28.9 billion, according to the country’s foreign ministry.

The Netherlands accounted for about a third of this money ($8.3 billion), followed by the U.S. ($5.1 billion) and Switzerland ($2.8 billion).

Among other key investing countries are: Belgium ($1.6 billion), Russia ($1.5 billion), South Korea ($1.5 billion), China ($1.4 billion), France ($770 million), the U.K. ($661 million) and Germany...

According to the Ministry of Energy, Kazakhstan is going to voluntarily cut its oil output by 78,000 barrels per day starting from May until the end of 2023.

«Kazakhstan will implement a voluntary cut of 78,000 barrels per day from May till the end of 2023 in coordination with other OPEC and non-OPEC Participating Countries in the Declaration of Cooperation,» the agency said in a statement.

The energy ministry also said that this voluntary cut is a precautionary measure in addition to the reduction in production agreed upon at the 33rd OPEC and non-OPEC Ministerial...

According to Roman Vasilenko, vice foreign minister of Kazakhstan, the country’s position toward the war in Ukraine is crystal clear. In an interview with DW, he said that Kazakhstan’s foreign policy is based on its national interests.

The country stands for the territorial integrity of all states, including Ukraine, as the U.N. Charter requires.

«Our position is not pro-Russian or pro-American or pro-Chinese. Our position is pro-Kazakhstan and our foreign policy is based on the national interests of Kazakhstan,» he underscored.

The vice foreign minister also said that Kazakhstan is pursuing seize fire and is...

According to Olzhas Baidildinov, author and host of the «Baidildinov. Oil» TV show, Kazakhstan probably wants to increase its share in the North Caspian Operating Company, an international consortium that has run the Kashagan oil field on the Caspian Sea offshore since 2016.

«Five billion dollars in fines is quite a big amount of money. The consortium has already invested $65 billion in the project. They have never stopped investing, so these investments might be even bigger now, about $70 billion. Knowing all this, the government wants them to pay $5 billion in fines. I think...

BAMIN, a subsidiary of Eurasian Resources Group and British mining company Anglo American have signed an agreement that guarantees the acquisition of the full export volumes of BAMIN’s Pedra de Ferro mine for 2023. As of today, the Pedro de Ferra mine produces about one million tons of high-quality iron ore a year.

«The signing of this contract builds on previous sales agreements between Anglo American and BAMIN for standalone exports and once again demonstrates BAMIN’s position as a high-quality supplier of iron ore. We look forward to having a successful relationship with Anglo American,» Benedikt...

As of March 1, 2023, the banking sector’s assets in Kazakhstan reached $97.9 billion assets, a 0.1% increase compared with January 2023, according to the Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market (ARDFM). A 0.6% increase in the loan portfolio was a key driver for this growth, the regulator said.

High-liquid assets have risen to 31.2% ($30.6 billion). Banks’ equity capital rose in February by 3.9% to $12.4 billion (a 7.4% increase since the beginning of the year). At the same time, the banking sector reported a 0.5% decrease to $85.6 billion in its liabilities (a 2.3% decrease...

Kazakhstan has filed a lawsuit against the North Caspian Operating Company (NCOC). The country’s government wants the oil company to pay $5.1 billion in fines for violating environmental legislation, according to Bloomberg, citing the Ministry of Ecology of Kazakhstan.

«The Ministry of Ecology blames NCOC for storage of twice as much sulfur the country’s legislations allow it to store within a production facility,» the news agency reported.

NCOC earlier said that it follows all rules and requirements in Kazakhstan consistently.

The Kashagan oil field is considered one of the largest oil deposits discovered over the...

During a state visit to Almaty, Kazakhstan, Secretary of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Regional Committee of the CPC Ma Xingrui brought the idea of launching cooperation between local and Chinese companies to produce tantalum and beryllium, rare metals necessary for many industrial purposes, according to the website of Kazakhstan’s prime minister.

The Chinese official said that China has been pursuing modernization not only in China itself but also abroad, an ambitious plan Xi Jinping proposed several years ago. According to Xingrui, Kazakhstan can also benefit from the Chinese plan of modernization.

There are several key directions in the plan, including...

Members of the parliament supported the candidacy of Alikhan Smailov to be prime minister of the country’s cabinet. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed a decree on his official appointment as prime minister.

Earlier this week Smailov was nominated to the office by the political party Amanat. Tokayev supported this decision.

«The Amanat party nominated its candidate and I support this decision. I suggest appointing Alikhan Smailov prime minister once again. As you all know, he is a hardworking and professional person. I think he knows very well what we expect from his cabinet,» the president said to...

Analytics believe that inflation is going to be high over the period from 2023 to 2025. This is a less optimistic outlook compared with the previous one, according to the National Bank.

In a survey conducted by the regulator experts said they expect inflation at 12.2% this year, 8.8% in 2024 and 7.2% in 2025. In February, when inflation reached 21.3% on a year-to-year basis, their forecast was slightly more optimistic: 11.8% in 2023, 8% in 2024 and 7% in 2025.

As a result, the National Bank has highlighted that the base rate increase expectations for 2023 and 2024 have...

KTZ Express, a transportation and logistical company within the national railway company Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ), is working with China Xinjiang Electronic Port to launch a new data sharing platform designed to speed up customs clearance for Kazakhstani and Chinese carriers, the KTZ said in a statement.

According to the Ministry of Trade and Integration of Kazakhstan, in 2022, the transit of cargo from China via Kazakhstan increased by 13% and reached 9.4 million tons of cargo. In order to prove their intentions, the two countries have agreed to build trade hubs in Urumchi and Almaty. Moreover, a third railway...

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has suggested broadcasting important plenary sessions of the national parliament on a state TV channel. He made this statement while giving a speech to the parliament.

He noted that the cabinet is going to be beholden to the parliament. Therefore, ministers have to possess not only professional knowledge but also a set of skills that can let them maintain their interests and opinions in front of the parliament clearly and convincingly.

Nowadays, people have an opportunity to observe all mistakes the cabinet can make and help to correct them, according to Tokayev.

«Today...

The National Bank of Kazakhstan hasn’t changed official limits for withdrawing cash from banks for small businesses, even though several state agencies demanded the regulator to do so, according to the National Entrepreneur Chamber Atameken.

In January 2023, the country’s authorities suggested the National Bank cut the cashing in of money limits by half ($22,348), citing the fight against money laundering. In turn, Atameken wanted the regulator to do the opposite.

On June 1, 2020, Kazakhstan adopted the following cashing-in of money limits for small, medium-sized and large-sized businesses: $44,697, $268,182 and $335,227, respectively.

A company can withdraw more cash...