Tag Archives: economy

Kazakh Central Bank keeps interest rates steady

JAN. 13 2023 (The Bulletin) — Kazakhstan’s Central Bank kept its key interest rate steady at 16.75% because it said that inflation was still rising, although more slowly than previously. Annualised inflation in Kazakhstan now stands at around 20.3%. In Georgia, the Central Bank said that inflation measured around 9.8%. Kyrgyzstan was the only country in the region to lower interest rates last year.

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— This story was published in issue 532 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin, on Jan. 16 2023

— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2023

Georgia trade turnover jumps by a third

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JAN. 13 2023 (The Bulletin) — Georgia’s foreign trade turnover, an important indicator on the health of its economy, jumped by 32.8% in 2022 to $19b, the state statistics committee said. Georgia’s economy has rebounded fast and hard since the coronavirus pandemic dented output and demand.

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— This story was published in issue 532 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin, on Jan. 16 2023

— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2023

Kazakh inflation hits Steppe Cement profit

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JAN. 11 2023 (The Bulletin) — London-listed Steppe Cement said that high inflation in Kazakhstan would hit its profit in 2022, forcing its share price to drop by 15%. The announcement was significant because it was one of the first times that business has admitted that high inflation in Kazakhstan, at 20%, is hurting it.

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— This story was published in issue 532 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin, on Jan. 16 2023

— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2023

Georgian and Kyrgyz Central Banks keep interest rates steady

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OCT. 25/27 2021 (The Bulletin) — The Georgian and Kyrgyz central banks both decided to keep their interest rates steady but warned that accelerating inflation may force more rises. Georgia raised its interest rate to a 13-year high of 10% in August. It said that inflation was now measuring around 12%. As for Kyrgyzstan, it kept its interest rate at 7.5% and said that external factors were driving inflation.

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— This story was published in issue 505 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin, on Oct. 28 2021

— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2021

Armenia increases its military budget

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OCT. 25 2021 (The Bulletin) — Armenia will increase its defence spending by 11% to 345b dram ($720m) from 2022, PM Nikol Pashinyan told parliament. Mr Pashinyan has had to respond to accusations that the Armenian army was underfunded and under-armed when it lost a war last year to Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh. His opponents said that 11% is not a big enough rise and pointed out that Azerbaijan’s annual military budget in 2021 had been around $2.6b.

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— This story was published in issue 505 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin, on Oct. 28 2021

— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2021

Armenia and Iran agree to build road bypassing Azerbaijan

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OCT. 25 2021 (The Bulletin) — Armenia and Iran agreed to build a stretch of road that avoids crossing through territory now controlled by Azerbaijan and to smooth customs regulations, Iranian media quoted Iranian officials as saying. The deal is considered significant as it underlines the neighbours’ commitment to each other despite pressure from Azerbaijan to break up the alliance. It now controls a 20km stretch of road that it captured after defeating Armenia in a war for Nagorno-Karabakh last year.

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— This story was published in issue 505 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin, on Oct. 28 2021

— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2021

Kazakhstan and Tajikistan increase interest rates

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ALMATY/OCT. 25 2021 (The Bulletin) — The Kazakh and Tajik Central Banks both raised their interest rates to try to dampen soaring inflation.

Commenting on pushing Kazakhstan’s interest rate up by a quarter of a percentage point to 9.75%, its highest level since April 2020, the Kazakh Central Bank said that annualised inflation hit 8.9% in September.

“The external inflation situation remains unfavourable. This is due to high world food prices, supply disruptions, rising costs of transportation, raw materials and energy, as well as the recovery of domestic demand,” it said.

On a more positive note, the Central Bank said that retail had started to recover after an easing off of the coronavirus pandemic.

In Dushanbe, the Central Bank raised its interest rate to 13.25% from 13%. It also said that inflation measured 9.6%, double its official target.

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— This story was published in issue 505 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin, on Oct. 28 2021

— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2021

Uzbek inflation rising fast

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OCT. 21 2021 (The Bulletin) — Uzbekistan’s Central Bank said that inflation in September was 10.8%, higher than its baseline scenario forecast. Importantly, it said that food and energy prices, two of the main expenses for ordinary people, have risen faster, with food prices jumping by 14.4% and energy prices rising by 23%. Inflation in the region is eating into GDP rates and economists have said that it is acting as a brake on growth.

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— This story was published in issue 505 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin, on Oct. 28 2021

— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2021

Georgia’s economy to grow by 7.7%, says IMF

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JULY 22 2021 (The Bulletin) — The IMF said in its latest economic assessment that it expected Georgia’s economy to grow by 7.7% this year, underlining its sharp recovery from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Economists have said that the major concern for Georgia’s economy is inflation. The Central Bank said that it was running at nearly 10% last month.

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— This story was published in issue 493 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin, on July 22 2021

— Copyright the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin 2021

Uzbek data shows industrial growth

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JULY 22 2021 (The Bulletin) — Data published by Uzbekistan’s State Statistics Committee said that output at Uzbek industries was 8.5% higher in the first six months of the year compared to the same period in 2020. Most metrics in the Statistic Committee’s twice-a-year data release showed that Uzbek the economy was growing. The one sector that didn’t show much of an increase was construction, a key driver of the economy, which showed growth compared to the same period in 2020 of just 0.1%.

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— This story was published in issue 493 of the Central Asia & South Caucasus Bulletin, on July 22 2021