News

In April, the Business Activity Index across Kazakhstan’s service sector rose to 51.4, according to Freedom Holding Corp. By comparison, the index stood at 50.3 in March.

Growth in activity has been recorded in each month since the beginning of the year, with the latest increase being the most significant in nine months. According to surveyed representatives of the sector, the growth was primarily driven by inflow of new orders, with the latest expansion being the fastest in a year and a half.

Respondents attributed the increase to improving underlying demand trends, successful marketing campaigns, new client acquisitions and the...

The Gstaad Guy, a British blogger with 1.2 million subscribers, including movie and music stars, and even Princess Maria-Olympia of Greece and Denmark, visited Almaty, the largest city in Kazakhstan. The videos he posted on his Instagram account immediately went viral. Kursiv LifeStyle decided to check out what the Gstaad Guy experienced in Kazakhstan.

A video titled «Going to Kazakhstan’s Almaty instead of Miami’s Grand Prix,» posted by the blogger, gathered more than 42,000 likes in just 12 hours, becoming one of the most popular videos on his account.

During his trip to Kazakhstan, the Gstaad Guy visited Charyn Canyon...

The volume of securities traded on the International Trading System (ITS) in Astana fell by 27% in April to $955 million month-on-month (MoM), down from the previous month’s record of $1.31 billion, the platform said in a statement. Meanwhile, the Astana International Exchange (AIX) reported a 74% MoM increase to $86 million — still nearly 11 times lower than the ITS figure.

According to ITS, the change in trade volume reflects current sentiment in the global financial markets.

«In the long term, trading volume is expected to grow, supported by a rising number of active investors...

During the night of May 6 to 7, the Eta Aquariids meteor shower — a picturesque act of nature — will be visible in Almaty and several other regions of Kazakhstan. Although the peak activity occurred the previous night, the shower will still remain bright and visually striking, with up to 30 meteors lighting up the sky per hour.

The Eta Aquariids are associated with particles left behind by Halley’s Comet. Each year, as Earth passes through the trail of dust from the comet, these particles enter the atmosphere at high velocity (around 67 kilometers per second) and burn up...

General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Tô Lâm has thanked Kazakhstan for its support of Vietnam’s fight for independence, as reported by Akorda, the official apparatus of Kazakhstan’s president. He also expressed his gratitude to President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and the people of Kazakhstan for the warm reception in Astana.

«CPV and the people of Vietnam will always be grateful for the support Kazakhstan provided to our country in the past, during its fight for national liberation, and continues to provide now by facilitating the development of our country,» Tô Lâm said.

He...

Turkish TAV Holding will invest $362 million in the Almaty airport it controls over the next five years, Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Transport reported on its website. The number one priority is to raise wages for airport workers and reconstruct the tarmac.

These tasks are part of a memorandum of cooperation signed by the ministry and TAV Holding. The document, for instance, stipulates a 25% average salary increase for airport personnel within the year. Moreover, the company is expected to create an additional 600 jobs by the end of the year and build training and medical centers for the personnel. The...

QazaqAir, previously owned by the Samruk-Kazyna National Welfare Fund and sold to the Vietnamese Sovico Group last year, will now be rebranded as Vietjet Qazaqstan. The agreement was signed during the Kazakhstan-Vietnam business panel held in Astana, as reported by inform.kz. Sovico Group’s portfolio includes the Vietnamese airline Vietjet.

Nurlan Zhakupov, CEO of Samruk-Kazyna, stated during the forum that the QazaqAir sale deal has been completed and financially resolved, with all suspensive conditions fulfilled.

«We highly appreciate the intentions of Sovico Group and VietJet Air to participate in QazaqAir’s management and operations under the new brand...

Kazakhstan is considering introducing a new mandatory payment for oil companies — equal to 1% of hydrocarbon production costs or investments — to finance research and development (R&D), according to the Energy Monitor fund. The proposed annual obligation is projected to generate about $30 million.

«A new tax may be introduced for oil-producing companies in Kazakhstan: 1% of R&D obligations may be redirected directly to the state budget. Apparently, due to a lack of tangible results [on the part of producers], the government has decided to centralize these funds,» Energy Monitor stated.

Nurlan Zhumagulov, head...

The State Revenue Committee (SRC) is going to streamline feedback from those who interact with customs services by putting QR codes in all customs posts and centers for customs clearance. These codes are meant to work as a «red button,» allowing citizens and business representatives to send a complaint directly to the chair of the committee.

Customs officials believe this tool is going to be the fastest feedback channel that could make a difference when businesses face obstacles while going through customs procedures, and for situations when unethical behavior by customs officials must be reported and addressed. Such complaints would...

Karim Massimov, the former head of Kazakhstan’s National Security Committee (KNB) and a two-time prime minister (2007–2012, 2014–2016), has been accused of spending $200,000 on a Russian astrologer, according to a new investigation by the nonprofit Freedom for Eurasia, as reported by The Telegraph.

The report entitled «Napoleon Complex» alleges that Massimov used illicit funds to finance luxury vacations, purchase £100,000 worth of Napoleon Bonaparte’s letters and consult an astrologer.

The report’s authors acknowledge that the legal case against Massimov — charged with high treason and sentenced to 18 years in prison following unrest in Kazakhstan in January...

Andrey Shin, founder and owner of the popular Kazakhstani ice cream brand Shin-Line, has begun construction of a 200-bed hospital near Almaty along with his partner from South Korea, according to Forbes Kazakhstan. Shin’s deputy, Damir Digay, confirmed this in a conversation with Kursiv.media.

The project, dubbed SLG-Hyundae, was officially established as SLG Hyundae Medical LLP, with South Korea’s Hyundae Hospital General Director Kim Boo-seop holding 51% of the shares and Shin’s sister, Veronika, owning 49%.

Kim is the founder of the Hyundae clinic chain, which operates several hospitals with more than 1,000 beds in South Korea, as well as...

Kazakhstan’s government has introduced new pricing rules that cap discounts on the purchase of key nuclear materials at 15%. The regulation applies to uranium hexafluoride — produced by converting uranium oxide, a finished product of Kazakhstan’s uranium industry — and enriched uranium products.

Under the new rules, the government will allow discounts of up to 15% when purchasing these materials. However, purchases related to international projects involving the Ulba Metallurgical Plant and transactions with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) are automatically considered market-based, regardless of how they align with the discount formula.

«The government of...

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan has signed a decree amending national legislation in a bid to accelerate the country’s accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO), as reported by the Uzbek Ministry of Justice.

Under the new law, all exclusive rights that state-owned enterprises once relied on have been lifted. Furthermore, the law requires Uzbek standards for home appliance energy efficiency to be aligned with international standards.

The country will also introduce a procedure for declaring the conformity of agricultural products. Uzbekistan intends to join the WTO next year. The country’s authorities have already held talks with key members of...

Starting May 1, 2025, a fourfold increase in recycling fees for electric cars took effect in Uzbekistan. The new rule, however, applies only to vehicles brought from abroad. Car importers haven’t even tried to hide their dissatisfaction, as they now are forced to pay $3,500 to $6,200 per vehicle in extra costs, as reported by Kun.uz.

How tariffs have changed

Under the new rules, the registration of an imported electric car under three years old now costs approximately $3,500, compared to around $900 before the amendments. For older models, the recycling fee has risen to roughly $6,100.

Earlier this year...

Kazakhstan is going to focus on value-added product exports, as Minister of Trade and Integration Arman Shakkaliyev said during a Taldau Talks podcast.

«When you export your products, you have to gain a high profit. Competition in the market is becoming more intense. Unfortunately, the share of the non-commodity sector is still small. Ten years ago, we had a 70/30 ratio, now it is 65/35. This is not a big change. We have to pursue better results,» the minister emphasized.

According to Shakkaliyev, there are more than 80 export-oriented companies in Kazakhstan that already sell...

1Fit, a Kazakhstani startup that offered fitness services under a «membership for all kinds of sports» model in Mexico, has announced the termination of its operations in the country, citing a combination of financial difficulties and security risks to employees.

The project was launched in Mexico last August, covering the cities of Guadalajara, Mexico City and Querétaro. However, in late April, the startup unexpectedly ceased operations and relocated its team back to Kazakhstan.

Threats to employees and financial difficulties

According to El Financiero, a Mexican media outlet focused on finance and politics, 1Fit left the country’s market without prior notification...

A 20-year-old Sudanese man named Amir has been trapped in the transit zone of Almaty International Airport after a failed attempt to fly to Rwanda, according to the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights (KIBHR). His ordeal mirrors the plot of «The Terminal,» the 2004 film starring Tom Hanks as a man stranded in an airport due to geopolitical complications.

Amir arrived in Almaty in 2023 to study at a university. But soon after, conflict erupted in Sudan between government forces and armed groups. The capital city of Khartoum, Amir’s hometown, fell to militants. His house was destroyed and his...

According to the Kazakh Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation, the Kapchagay water reservoir has brimmed to 100% for the second year in a row, thanks to bilateral arrangements between Kazakhstan and China.

Currently, the body of water holds about 18.5 billion cubic meters, which is enough to provide farmers in the Almaty region with irrigation water.

The Kapchagay water reservoir was built on the Ili River, which flows from China. The river plays a crucial role in supporting the ecosystem of Lake Balkhash. Thanks to the abundant inflow of water, the lake’s level has risen by 12 centimeters over...

Kazakhstani service members will participate in a military parade in Moscow marking the 80th anniversary of Victory Day, according to Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Defense. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev is expected to observe them from the podium on Red Square.

Troops from the 37th Panfilov Air Assault Brigade will march in Moscow’s Red Square on May 9.

The service members have already arrived in Russia. During their visit, they toured the Panfilov’s Guardsmen Museum in Volokolamsk and traveled to the village of Nelidovo, where they commemorated fallen soldiers buried in a mass grave. The memorial honors a Red Army infantry unit named...

Kazakhstan ranked 141st in the World Press Freedom Index, while neighboring Kyrgyzstan has slipped to the 144th spot, as reported by Reporters Without Borders.

This means that Kazakhstan has moved up by one notch this year compared to 2024, while Kyrgyzstan has plunged by 24 notches year over year.

However, all five Central Asian states are marked in red on the map, meaning that the situation with press freedom is quite serious there. Among other states in red are Belarus (166), Azerbaijan (167), Russia (171), Afghanistan (175), Iran (176) and China (178). All in all, 90 out of...

In Q1, Kazakhstan’s largest airline Air Astana, along with its low-cost subsidiary FlyArystan, reported a 10.4% year-on-year increase in consolidated revenue, reaching $292.4 million, according to the company’s financial statements.

EBITDAR (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, Amortization and Rent) rose 37.1% to $59.9 million, with the margin (EBITDAR-to-revenue ratio) increasing by four percentage points (p.p.) to 20.5%.

Available seat kilometers rose 13.5% to 4.7 billion, while revenue passenger kilometers (the number of transported passengers multiplied by the distance traveled by each passenger) increased by 13.9% to 3.8 billion. The total number of passengers carried increased by 7.1% to 2 million...

Annual inflation in Kazakhstan accelerated to 10.7% at the end of April (up from 10% in March), as reported by the Bureau of National Statistics.

In contrast, consumer prices slowed month-on-month, easing from 1.3% in March to 1.2% in April. Services reported the highest price increase at 15.7%, while prices for food and non-food goods rose by 8.5% and 8.9%, respectively.

The cold-water tariff rose by 89.1% over the year, jewelry and watches by 27.7%, and potatoes by 79%. Prices also surged for vacations at Kazakhstani resorts (70.1%), mobile operator services (15.8%), passenger cars (27.1%), onions (63.8%), cabbage (46.8%) and...

Kazakhstan has resumed wheat exports to Morocco for the first time since 2008, according to a statement from Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ), the national railway operator.

Kazakhstan began exporting wheat to Morocco in 2004. It shipped 10,000 tons in 2006, 11,000 tons in 2007 and 40,000 tons in 2008 before shipments halted. In 2025, exports to the North African country have resumed, with 83,532 tons delivered so far.

The initial shipment was dispatched from the Zhana-Esil station in the Akmola region and the Sarykol station in the Kostanay region. The grain, loaded onto 105 railcars, will be transported through Latvia...

Azerbaijan-based ADO-G, a group of companies specializing in various types of construction, and the Azerbaijani Zira Port on the Caspian Sea have proposed establishing an underground water transfer system to connect the Caspian and the Black Seas, as reported by Minval.az.

According to the project supervisor, ADO-G CEO Musa Suleymanov, the tunnel would have a 10-meter diameter and would pass through either Georgia or Russia, with the goal of halting the shallowing of the Caspian Sea by utilizing the water level difference between the two bodies of water.

ADO-G expressed its readiness to develop the feasibility study and attract resources...