News

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a loan of 90 billion tenge (about $173.6 million) to Kazakhstan’s Otbasy Bank to expand access to mortgages, particularly for women, and to support environmentally friendly housing finance.

The funding is part of the «Promoting Inclusive and Green Housing Finance» project.

Read also: Kazakh banks face 2025 profit dip amid tax and reserve hikes.

The program is expected to finance more than 2,000 mortgages, with priority given to women through the «Umai» program.

The initiative aims to improve access to housing finance...

In an interview with Al Jazeera, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi confirmed direct communication with U.S. President Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff during the ongoing conflict, while firmly rejecting claims that official negotiations are taking place.

«I receive messages from Witkoff directly, as before, and this does not mean that we are in negotiations,» Araghchi said. «There is no truth to the claim of negotiations with any party in Iran.»

The Iranian official also highlighted Tehran’s lack of trust in Washington, citing negative experiences in negotiations with the U.S.

«The...

FC Barcelona’s academy has signed a new player, 15-year-old Karim Mendikanov of Kazakhstan, who is set to join the team next season, according to Spanish sports media outlet Mundo Deportivo.

Mendikanov moved to Spain in 2022. The young player began his career with Cerdanyola FC, where he attracted attention. This season, he plays for Sant Cugat FC, where he has quickly established himself as a key player.

The outlet also highlighted Mendikanov’s ability to beat defenders and his skill in one-on-one situations, noting that he is one of the league’s top assist providers.

The young player’s vivid performance didn’t go...

Kazakhstan’s National Bank will consider lowering its base rate once inflation shows a sustained decline both month over month and year over year, and if forecasts are met, Governor Timur Suleimenov said.

He noted that in the second quarter, the economy is expected to continue adjusting to the new Tax Code, as well as changes in utility tariffs and fuel prices.

Read also: Kazakh banks face 2025 profit dip amid tax and reserve hikes.

A moratorium on changes to retail prices for AI-92 gasoline and liquefied petroleum gas expired...

A video showing a camel tied to a pipe outside a five-story apartment building in Aktau, western Kazakhstan, has gone viral on social media.

The clip was shared by the public group 112_aktau, with the caption: «Whose camel is this?»

According to Lada.kz, the video was filmed near Building No. 2 in the city’s 13th microdistrict.

Local authorities responded quickly. The city administration said...

Just over a quarter of online shoppers in Kazakhstan still pay cash on delivery, with that share rising to 57.5% in Astana.

At the same time, about half of all e-commerce transactions in the country fall in the range of 25,000 to 100,000 tenge (roughly $50 to $200). Kursiv.media analyzed new data from the Bureau of National Statistics to profile the typical Kazakhstani online shopper.

On average, 32.13% of users in Kazakhstan regularly shop online.

Regions show uneven adoption

Contrary to expectations, the East Kazakhstan region — not Almaty or Astana — leads the country in...

All motor vehicles in Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan, must obtain eco-stickers by the end of 2026. Authorities have set a strict deadline for the first time covering vehicle marking and city zoning. Up to one million vehicles will be subject to the requirements, Autostrada.uz reported.

Until recently, the system operated on a voluntary basis. Since January, drivers have been able to obtain a sticker via the my.gov.uz portal or at vehicle inspection centers run by the Road Traffic Safety Service.

What changes

The Ecology Committee has been tasked with dividing Tashkent into three types...

Following the sale of service dogs, seven retired horses from Kazakhstan’s Border Service of the National Security Committee were auctioned on March 31. Some animals sold for up to three times their starting price.

Read also: Anxiety pills and sweet treats: Unusual gifts to Kazakhstani public servants unveiled.

Service horses in Kazakhstan are used by border guards and police, including for search operations and rapid movement across difficult terrain.

Strong demand drives up prices

The seller, Kazspecexport, an enterprise under the Ministry of Defense, listed the horses at an average starting price of...

Kazakhstan’s business activity deteriorated in March 2026, with the Freedom Holding Corp. Manufacturing PMI falling to 47.4, reflecting a solid weakening in the manufacturing sector’s health, the most pronounced since 2022.

The rate was down from 48.1 in February and remained below the 50.0 no-change mark for a third consecutive month.

The key factor negatively affecting overall business conditions in March was a sharp and accelerated decline in manufacturing output. Production decreased for the third consecutive month, at the fastest pace since January 2022.

In line with the trend in output, new orders also declined for the third month in...

Kcell JSC (operating under the Kcell and Activ brands) has deployed an advanced AI-driven solution to automate outbound communications with its subscribers. This new approach enables faster and more accurate delivery of information about tariffs and services, takes individual customer preferences into account and significantly reduces irrelevant outreach.

Built on machine learning, large language models, and Big Data, the solution addresses evolving customer expectations. Today, subscribers expect communication that is timely, relevant, and easy to understand — without intrusive calls or repetitive offers.

«We have deliberately moved away from mass outbound calling in favor of intelligent, context-aware engagement. The system...

Traffic police in Kyzylorda, southern Kazakhstan, helped a tourist from Malaysia traveling across the country in a legendary Volkswagen Transporter T1 van. The «hippie bus» of the 1950s and 1960s sparked as much interest as the traveler’s mission, Polisia.kz reported.

Police in touch

After arriving in Kyzylorda from Almaty, the foreigner got a little lost in the city. Patrol officer Murat Shyngyskhan came to help. Speaking fluent English, he gave directions and pointed out the needed locations.

The meeting turned out to be more than a mere formality, as the officer helped the owner of...

Scientists have reconstructed the appearance of a man who lived in the Mangystau region approximately 5,750 years ago. The reconstruction was based on a skull discovered by archaeologist Andrey Astafyev during excavations at an ancient settlement near Aktau in western Kazakhstan.

The burial site also contained the skeleton of an adult male with robust facial features, according to experts. The skull was elongated and high, with prominent brow ridges, a narrow nose and a rather sharp profile. Based on these features, scientists believe the man had a stern appearance.

Researchers also noted that, based on his anthropological characteristics, the...

The celebrated art object immortalizing the dog rescue at the Sayran reservoir has gained attention on social media beyond Kazakhstan. Kursiv LifeStyle takes a look at how the sculpture has resonated with audiences worldwide.

Art Daily Dose, with over 22 million Instagram followers, posted about the monument. The post emphasized how the sculpture recreated the moment when people formed a human chain to save the dog.

Users in the comment section...

A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to halt construction of a proposed $400 million ballroom at the White House, ruling that the project cannot proceed without congressional approval, according to The Associated Press.

U.S. District Judge Richard Leon granted a preliminary injunction after the National Trust for Historic Preservation asked the court to stop the construction. The lawsuit argues the administration does not have the authority to continue the project on its own.

«The President of the United States is the steward of the White House for future generations of First Families...

An American freelance journalist was abducted Tuesday in Baghdad and Iraqi security forces are actively pursuing those responsible, The Associated Press reported.

Al-Monitor later identified the journalist as Shelly Kittleson, a longtime contributor to the outlet who has reported extensively from Iraq and Syria. Iraqi officials also confirmed that a foreign journalist had been kidnapped but did not provide further details.

Authorities reported that two vehicles were involved in the abduction. One of them crashed during a pursuit near Al-Haswa in Babil province, after which the journalist was transferred to another vehicle that escaped. Iraqi forces later intercepted one...

As of Jan. 1, 2026, Kazakhstan’s external debt stood at $181.8 billion, up $17.2 billion from 2025, according to data from the National Bank of Kazakhstan. At the same time, the increase over the last quarter amounted to $10.4 billion.

The regulator attributed the increase in external debt to a $12.8 billion rise in balance of payments transactions and a $4.3 billion increase in exchange rate, valuation and other changes.

The external debt composition is as follows:

During a phone call with European Council President António Costa, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran is prepared to find a path out of the conflict with the U.S. and Israel — under certain conditions, according to TASS.

«The solution to normalizing the situation is to end their [U.S. and Israeli] aggression. We have never sought tension or war, and we have the will to end this war under certain conditions, especially with the necessary guarantees that aggression will not be repeated,» Pezeshkian said, according to his press office.

Pezeshkian accused...

Samruk-Kazyna plans to cut 11% of its administrative and management staff in Astana, aiming to save about 5 billion tenge (roughly $10.5 million) in salary costs starting in 2026, the fund told Interfax-Kazakhstan.

Read also: A house divided: Kazakhstan’s government at odds with its own wealth fund reform.

The reduction will affect 729 employees, or about 11% of administrative and management personnel. The average monthly salary for those roles was about $1,500.

Samruk-Kazyna oversees several of Kazakhstan’s major state-linked companies, including Kazakhtelecom, Kazatomprom, KazMunayGas and KEGOC.

Read...

KazMunayGas (KMG), Kazakhstan’s national oil and gas company, is advancing 22 exploration projects with a combined resource base of 4.7 billion tons of hydrocarbons, CEO Askhat Khassenov said.

Read also: How $100 oil could pay for Kazakhstan’s nuclear future.

Khassenov said the company is pursuing a strategy focused on deep and underexplored regions to expand its resource base and sustain long-term production.

Reserve outlook and production plans

Remaining recoverable oil reserves at KMG’s operating assets total about 445 million tons, with more than half classified as hard to recover.

A man in Sweden is set to stand trial on accusations that he sexually exploited his wife over several years, according to SVT.

Allegations span multiple years

Prosecutors say the alleged abuse took place in the Ängermanland region between August 2022 and October 2025. During that time, authorities claim, the woman was under her husband’s complete control.

Investigators allege he restricted her freedom, monitored her through cameras installed in their home and exercised extensive control over her daily life.

Claims of coercion and control

According to the prosecution, the man also supplied his wife with drugs...

A recent social media post spotlighted an unexpected cinematic link: years before playing the Dark Knight and Saruman, Christian Bale and Christopher Lee starred together in the ambitious Soviet-era co-production “Mio in the Land of Faraway” (“Mio min Mio”).

Directed by Russian filmmaker Vladimir Grammatikov and released in 1987, this fantasy epic was a Soviet, Swedish, and Norwegian joint venture. It remains a fascinating “hidden gem” in both actors’ filmographies.

The plot: A journey to the Land of Faraway

Based on Astrid Lindgren’s novel, the story follows a neglected Swedish boy, Bosse, who discovers he is the prince...

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has warned of potential attacks targeting facilities linked to several American companies operating in the Middle East.

In a statement cited by Tasnim news agency, the IRGC described divisions of major IT companies as «legitimate targets.» Companies referenced include Apple, Microsoft, Google, Meta, Intel, HP, IBM, Nvidia, Tesla, General Electric, Boeing and Oracle.

The statement alleges the firms are involved in identifying and tracking targets for attacks, though it did not provide evidence to support the claim.

«We recommend that all employees of these companies leave...

Tokyo Skytree, the iconic observation tower in Japan’s capital, is set to reopen its elevator, which malfunctioned in late February, on April 1, the tower operator, Tobu Tower Skytree Co., Ltd., said in a press release.

The company stated that all safety measures have been implemented and that it will conduct a test run on March 31. The work included replacing the damaged moving cable.

The incident involving the elevator occurred on Feb. 22, 2026, when it was carrying 20 passengers and unexpectedly stopped while descending, trapping them for around five hours...

NASA is preparing for its first crewed lunar mission in more than five decades, with the Artemis II launch scheduled for Wednesday evening, The Associated Press reported.

The 32-story Space Launch System rocket will carry four astronauts aboard the Orion capsule on a roughly 10-day journey that includes orbiting Earth, traveling to the moon, looping around it, and returning for a Pacific Ocean splashdown.

According to Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, the launch director for NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems Program, the team is in «excellent shape,» with both the technical systems and the weather currently favorable. The mission had previously been...