Kazakhstan’s official trade and economic mission kicks off in Turkey

31 July, 2019 17:08

The Turkish city of Istanbul is hosting an annual official trade and economic mission between July 30 to August 1, 2019, as part of developing cooperation between Kazakhstan and Turkey, with Atameken National Chamber of Entrepreneurs, Kazakhstan’s External Trade Chamber, Ministry of Industry and Infrastructural Development, the Turkish embassy to Kazakhstan, the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB), the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) as well as External Economic Relations Board of Turkey (DEIK) holding the event.

The mission targets at developing trade relations between Kazakh and Turkish entrepreneurs, building solid business ties between the two States. It is also the good opportunity for Kazakh entrepreneurs to present their commodities to the Turkish side.

With a share of 2.42% in worldwide commerce Turkey is the ninth trading country and one of the key trade and economic partners of Kazakhstan.

With Kazakh products constituting 0.6% in Turkey’s imports, Kazakhstan is potentially key trade partner of Turkey as it is placed 42nd. Turkey imports considerable amounts of Kazakhstan’s mineral products.

The two countries’ trade and economic relations have been demonstrating dynamic development and mutual interest. The Kazakhstan-Turkey Business Council was set up on 28 November 2017 involving Atameken National Chamber of Entrepreneurs and Turkey’s External Economic Relations Committee (DEIK), the Business Council of Turkic-speaking States was established in 2009, and Atameken and the Union of Turkish Trade Chambers (TOBB) concluded a memorandum in 2014.

In 2015, the Kazakhstan-Turkey Business Council was renewed seeking its mission in developing strategic cooperation between Kazakhstan and Turkey.

Since Kazakhstan’s independence, Turkey has invested 3 billion US dollars in the Kazakh economy. In the period between 2005 and 2018, the gross inflow of direct investments from Turkey to Kazakhstan totaled at 2.9 billion US dollars, accounting for 1% of the overall flow of direct investments (16th place in terms of the gross amount of investments at the time).

Turkish capital can be found in various spheres of the Kazakh economy, including construction, tele-communications, agriculture, pharmacy, food, industrial projects.

As of May1, 2019, 4314 legal entities involving Turkish capital are registered in Kazakhstan, of which 2183 are active (every tenth foreign enterprise in Kazakhstan is Turkish). 79 projects for 5.3 billion US dollars involving Turkish investors are operational to date, of which 34 projects are already completed, 9 are under way, other 36 are future-direction projects.

Progress in the trade and economic relations between the States is ongoing as the city of Nur-Sultan saw the signing of an order creating the Turkic Trade and Industrial Chamber in May 17, 2019

Kazakhstan’s businesspeople emphasis the serious perspectives for developing the bilateral cooperation in infrastructure, agriculture and energy.

Kazakhstan has the huge potential for exporting environmentally safe agricultural products which are at an advantage compared to products imported from other countries. First, they are pulses, cereals and vegetable oil.

As Kazakh representatives state, machine-building, ferrous metallurgy and pharmacy and the chemical industry are priority and have a potential for increasing exports to Turkey.

2018 saw the trade turnover between the countries stand at 1.9 billion dollars, including exports – 1.242 billion US dollars and imports – 655 million US dollars. Between January and April 2019, the trade turnover has made up 944 million US dollars, including 714 million US dollars worth exports from Kazakhstan to Turkey, and 230 million US dollars valued imports.

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