By Rhod Mackenzie
In the first half of this year, the growth rate of the economy of Kazakhstan amounted to 5%, the head of the Ministry of National Economy Alibek Kuantirov said at a government meeting. According to Kuantirov, growth in the real sector amounted to 4.8%, and in the service sector - 4.9%. All major industries show positive dynamics, with construction, trade, and information and communications all showing the greatest growth. The growth rate of investments in to fixed assets amounted to 13%. The inflow of investments increased in transport and warehousing - by 56.8%, trade - by 32.2%, agriculture - by 22.1%, education - by 21.5%, as well as in industry - by 10.9%, including in the mining industry - by 11.4%.
In the regional context, the best indicators are noted in the Abay region, Mangistau, West Kazakhstan regions and in the city of Shymkent," the speaker informed. According to preliminary results, in January-May 2023, foreign trade turnover increased by 8% and amounted to $55.8 billion. Exports amounted to 31.6 billion US dollars. At the same time, exports of processed goods grew by 3.8% to $10.2 billion. Imports of goods amounted to $24.2 billion. In general, the positive trade balance amounted to $7.4 billion.
The manufacturing industry maintains positive growth rates. The volume of production increased by 3.5%. According to the MNE, positive growth was recorded in 15 regions. The largest increase is noted in the West Kazakhstan, Kostanay regions, in the Abay region, as well as in the city of Almaty. In the context of manufacturing industries, production growth in mechanical engineering was achieved by 28.8%, including in the automotive industry - by 40.1% and the production of electrical equipment - by 34.9%. In addition, growth was recorded in the following sectors: food production - by 5.3%, oil products - by 1.9%, building materials - by 4.4%, beverages - by 6.6%, plastic products - by 7 .8% and light industry - by 24%. The volume of production in the mining industry increased by 3.7%. At the same time, oil production increased by 5.6%, gas production - by 2.5%, extraction of other minerals - by 17.4%, services in the mining industry - by 3.2%. The extraction of metal ores decreased by 0.2%, coal production - by 8.1%," the minister said. The volume of completed construction works increased by 12.3%. Positive dynamics was recorded in 19 regions, while the largest growth in construction and installation work is noted in Zhetisu, Abay, Kyzylorda and Zhambyl regions. In January-June of this year, more than 7.4 million square meters of housing were commissioned, which is 11.8% more than in the corresponding period last year.
The highest rates of housing commissioning are observed in the cities of Almaty, Shymkent, as well as in the regions of Ulytau and Abai," Kuantirov informed. In agriculture, the volume of gross output increased by 3.2%. At the same time, positive growth in production in the industry was recorded in all regions. The East Kazakhstan, Mangistau, Akmola and Pavlodar regions showed the greatest growth. For all 7 economic indicators, positive growth is noted in 6 regions - in the Abay region, Akmola, West Kazakhstan, Kostanay regions, as well as in the cities of Almaty and Shymkent.
After listening to the speaker, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan Alikhan Smailov noted the need to achieve at least 5% economic growth by the end of this year. We must be prepared for various development scenarios, taking into account the current geopolitical situation. The first heads of government agencies need to step up work to diversify the economy and create permanent jobs," he said. Curbing price increases, he said, remains a very important task. As a result of the measures taken in the first half of the year, inflation slowed down to 14.6% in annual terms. At the same time, we are faced with the task of reducing inflation this year by 2 times. This requires coordinated and preventive action. The Ministry of Trade, together with interested government agencies, needs to ensure that inflation falls to the planned levels," the head of the Cabinet instructed.
This article originally appeared in Russian at kt.kz