Economic Newsletter on Kazakhstan January 2018 CONTENTS MACRO-ECONOMICS & FINANCE... 2 ENERGY & NATURAL RESOURCES... 4 TRANSPORT & COMMUNICATIONS... 5 AGRICULTURE... 7 EXHIBITIONS IN KAZAKHSTAN (January-March 2018)... 11 CONTACTS... 12 The Economic Section of the in Kazakhstan intends to distribute this newsletter as widely as possible among Dutch institutions, companies and persons from the Netherlands. The newsletter summarises economic news from various Kazakhstani and foreign publications and aims to provide accurate information. However, the Embassy cannot be held responsible for any mistakes or omissions in the bulletin.
MACRO-ECONOMICS & FINANCE Growth in Kazakhstan is projected to moderate to 2.6% in 2018 In Kazakhstan, growth is estimated to have rebounded to 3.7% in 2017 from 1.1% in 2016, according to the Global Economic Prospects of January 2018 by the World Bank. The recovery was boosted by increased production at the Kashagan oil field (exempt from production cuts agreed by OPEC and some non-opec producers) and supportive macroeconomic policies. The latter included fiscal stimulus (the authorities flagship Nurly Zhol initiative, which provided funding to infrastructure, SMEs, and housing), greater exchange rate flexibility, and easing monetary policy. Growth in Kazakhstan is projected to moderate to 2.6% in 2018 as the one-off effects of increased production at the Kashagan oil field and the fiscal stimulus wane. It is set to rise to 3% by 2020 as the country reaps the benefits of structural reforms. Ukraine s economy is expected to continue mending as geopolitical tensions subside, with growth strengthening to 4% in the medium term. In Uzbekistan, exchange rate liberalization in September 2017, which resulted in a significant currency depreciation, will help improve competitiveness, enhance market efficiency, and economic growth, according to AKIpress. Economy Ministry sticks to GDP forecast of 4% The Ministry of National Economy sticks to GDP forecast of 4% for 2017. Minister Timur Suleimenov said at a Government s session that gross domestic product had been projected to amount to 4% and the ministry would stick to that figure. He added that in 2017 economic growth had been quite balanced and improvements had been observed in all sectors of economy. In his words, increased economic situation, gradual recovery of domestic demand, improvement of economic situation in the EU, Russia and China were among the factors which helped boost economic growth in Kazakhstan last year. Positive shifts were observed in external trade in the past 11 months: Kazakhstan s exports to Russia increased by 33%, China - 34.9% and the EU - 31%, Minister Suleimenov noted. He added that inflation rate decreased to 7.1%, whereas labor market demonstrated stability with unemployment rate at 5%. In addition, the National Fund assets amounted to $57.6 billion as of December 1, 2017 taking into account the funds attracted in order to support Kazakhstan s financial sector, Kazinform reported. Kazakhstan attracted FDI worth $15bn in 2017 Kazakhstan has attracted FDI to the tune of over $15 billion in first nine months of 2017, Kazinform reports. Last year in the first nine months alone, Kazakhstan attracted over $15 billion in FDI, Minister of National Economy Timur Suleimenov said at a session of the Government. According to Minister Suleimenov, there has been a 5.3% increase in FDI compared with the analogous period of 2016. FDI from member states of the Eurasian Economic Union increased by 40.8% up to $935.1 million or 5.9% of total FDI volume. It proves that Kazakhstan offers favorable conditions for EAEU business, Suleimenov added. Kazakhstan to cut budget deficit to 1.1% in 2018 Kazakhstan s budget deficit will decrease to 1.1% to GDP in 2018, said Minister of National Economy of Kazakhstan Timur Suleimanov, according to AKIpress. The Government and the National Bank of Kazakhstan adopted a joint statement on the main directions of economic policy for 2018 on January 30. 2
Budget deficit will decrease from 2.9% of GDP in 2017 to 1.1% of GDP in 2018, he said. This will allow to keep the public debt at a safe level less than 20% to GDP. Non-oil deficit is planned to be decreased to 7.4% of GDP, said Suleimanov. Kazakhstan predicts inflation to stay at 5-7% in 2018 In 2018, inflation rate in Kazakhstan is forecast in the corridor of 5-7%, Daniyar Akishev, Chairman of the National Bank of the Republic of Kazakhstan, said. We expect annual inflation to slow down gradually in 2018 and project it to be in the corridor of 5-7%, Mr. Akishev announced at a press conference on January 25. He reminded that annual inflation made 7.1% in 2017, which correspondent to the initial target corridor of 6-8%. Inflation slowed down amid predictable and adapted monetary policy of the National Bank and a stable situation in the global commodity and food markets, the Chairman of the Bank elaborated. Akishev pointed out a significant slowdown in inflation was indicated by the core inflation measure, without taking into account the volatile components. Over the reporting period, that indicator slid from 8.9% to 6.2%. Based on the results of the population survey in December 2017, the quantitative assessment of inflationary expectations for 2018 decreased to 7.1%, he added, according to Kazinform. EURASIAN ECONOMIC UNION BANKING Eurasian Economic Union countries still not agreed provisions on single oil and gas market As of December 2017, some provisions on the program for the formation of a single oil and gas market of the Eurasian Economic Union of a fundamental nature remained unagreed, a review of the results of Belarus foreign policy for 2017, published on the website of the Foreign Affairs Ministry of the republic, says. In 2017, the Belarusian side made intensive efforts to coordinate programs for the formation of single markets for oil and oil products of EEU and a single gas market. According to the Foreign Affairs Ministry, an agreement to return to the discussion of these issues in early 2018 was reached. The ministry believes that, in general, the past year was much more successful for the Eurasian economic integration than 2016. The partners in the union supported the Belarus approach on eliminating internal barriers in mutual trade by creating road maps that will be formed for a two-year period and include the most sensitive restrictions. At the meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council in Yerevan on October 25, an action plan (road map) was approved to eliminate exemptions and restrictions on the internal market of EEU for 2018-2019, the review says, 24.kg reported. National Bank decides to cut base rate to 9.75% The National Bank of Kazakhstan has decided to reduce the base rate to 9.75% with a band of +/- 1%. The NBK governor Daniyar Akishev said this in answer to the journalists questions after the briefing for the TV media, Kazpravda.kz reports. He reminded that a year ago, in January 2017, the base rate was 12%. The decision to reduce the base rate is due to the positive results of 2017 and the expectations of a favorable development of the economic situation in 2018. It confirms the National Bank s confidence in maintaining inflation within the new target corridor of 5-7% in 2018 and in the gradual achievement of the medium-term goal of 4% in 2020. I can say that we are moving from the stage of crisis management in the money market to the period of recovery, Akishev added. The NBK does not exclude further reduction of the base rate in 2018, he went on to say, Kazakhtanskaya Pravda reported. 3
ENERGY & NATURAL RESOURCES Kazakhstan produced record amount of oil in 2017 In 2017, Kazakhstan produced 86.2 million tons of oil, which is a record indicator for the entire history of the country s independence. This was stated at a briefing in the Government by Minister of National Economy Timur Suleimenov, Kazpravda.kz reports. This volume of oil production helped us to achieve 4% growth of GDP, the Minister said. He also noted that next year the Energy Ministry plans not to reduce the rate of extraction of raw materials. Also at the briefing, Suleimenov noted that due to the oil industry, in 2017, the export in Kazakhstan has increased significantly. With a general increase in trade turnover, by about 25%, our exports grew by about 32-33%, and imports by 15%. This is a very good indicator, this greatly strengthened our trade balance, which increased compared to 2016 by 70%, which had a very good effect on the state of the national currency, the minister added. Kazakhstan oil output to rise 1% in 2018 to 87 million tons Kazakhstan will increase its oil and gas concentrate production in 2018 by 1% to 87 million tons, compared to 86.2 million tons the previous year, its energy ministry told Reuters. Oil production at its giant Kashagan oil field will rise by 33% to 11 million tons this year, the ministry said. Kazakhstan plans to settle dispute on Karachaganak before the end of the first quarter of 2018 Kazakhstan plans to regulate the dispute on Karachaganak until the end of the first quarter 2018, said Kanat Bozumbayev, Minister of Energy of Kazakhstan. As I cannot disclose all the details, I can say we are on the active stage of negotiations. We will extend the memorandum which was concluded until the end of last year. Thus, extension of memorandum and resolution of this issue is expected until the end of first quarter 2018, said Bozumbayev. This week a new round of negotiations will start with the representatives of Karachaganak. We have reached common approaches. Both sides have shown intention to reach the agreement, he concluded. In 2015 it was reported that the Government of Kazakhstan might charge $2 billion from Karachaganak Petroleum Operating. Bloomberg reported the reason was in ignorance of agreement liabilities on the memorandum development. As a compensation the Government might increase its share in Karachaganak. Financial times wrote in 2016 that the consortium proposed to pay $300 million to settle the dispute. Bozumbayev said in July 2016 that the Government was conducting friendly negotiations with KPO shareholders. The information about application to arbitrary he declared to be false, according to KazWorld. Kazakhstan to build another oil refinery within next 4 years Kazakhstan needs the fourth oil refinery, says Kanat Bozumbayev, the country s energy minister. According to him, the ministry has already established an appropriate working group for consideration of that issue. And next year it is planned to prepare a feasibility study for the new refinery. The minister noted that it is necessary to attract an investor for the project and commence the construction in 2019. Kazakhstan needs the fourth oil refinery. It s my opinion. We are now raising this issue because the construction of a refinery lasts over one year. The demand for fuels and 4
lubricants is on the rise. According to our forecasts, by 2022, it may become necessary to increase imports of petroleum products. By that time, the fourth refinery shall have been built. The capacities of the existing three will not be enough to meet the growing demand, Kanat Bozumbayev told khabar.kz. Goldwind to install 5 MW of wind turbines in Kazakhstan Chinese wind turbine maker Xinjiang Goldwind Science & Tech Co Ltd has won an order to install two wind turbines in Kazakhstan with a combined capacity of 5 MW, news agency Kazinform reports. The deal was awarded by a Kazakh company, the name of which has not been disclosed. According to the report, Goldwind has already signed an agreement for the project with China-based CITIC Construction, a unit of financial services company CITIC Group. The wind farm will be constructed in the city of Almaty in southeastern Kazakhstan. The scheme will be Goldwind s first wind power project in Kazakhstan. The Asian Republic aims to lift the share of renewables to 3% of total generation by 2020 and to 10% by 2030. To achieve that goal, it plans to commission about 106 renewable energy facilities totalling 3,054.55 MW by 2020, including 1,787 МW of wind and 713,5 МW of solar parks, Renewables Now reported. For more news on Kazakhstan s energy sector, please see our Special Energy Issue, which is available on a monthly basis at the Embassy s website: https://www.netherlandsandyou.nl/your-country-and-the-netherlands/kazakhstan. TRANSPORT & COMMUNICATIONS Kazakhstan s investments in transport and logistics revealed Efficient transport infrastructure is a necessary condition for the development of the economy of Kazakhstan, in which the broad geography of the location of export-oriented production is combined with insufficient density of the transport network. At the same time, the coordination of transport communications with neighboring countries is becoming increasingly important. Kazakhstan has invested up to $30 billion in the development of transport infrastructure, logistics assets and competencies over the past 10 years. This was announced by the Minister for Investment and Development of Kazakhstan, Zhenis Kasymbek, at the republican meeting on improving the efficiency of transport and logistics infrastructure, Kazinform reported. Since 2015 the share of the transport sector in the country s GDP makes not less than 8 percent, according to the official. Over the past 10 years, the total amount of investments in the development of infrastructure, transport and logistics assets and competencies amounted to about $30 billion, he noted. During this period, more than 2,000 km of railways were built, 6,300 km of roads were reconstructed, the port capacities in the Caspian were increased up to 26 million tons, and the runways at 15 airports were reconstructed. The active construction of infrastructure had a positive impact on Kazakhstan's performance in international ratings. From 2011 to 2017, Kazakhstan's position on the Quality of Infrastructure indicator in the Global Competitiveness Index of the World Economic Forum improved by 14 points. From 2014 to 2016, in the World Bank's Logistics Performance Index, we climbed from the 88th to the 77th place. According to the state program Nurly Zhol, in 2020 we plan to take the 40th place, the minister added. An increase (compared to 2016) in the annual volume of transit traffic by 7 times, revenues from transit - by 5.5 times up to $4 billion per year, and the volume of cargo, 5
transported through the territory of Kazakhstan, up to 2 million containers per year are among the main tasks for the period until 2020, according to AzerNews. By 2020, volume of container shipments through Kazakhstan will increase 10-fold By 2020, the volume of container transit traffic through Kazakhstan is planned to increase 10-fold up to 2 million TEUs. This was announced by the Minister for Investment and Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan Zhenis Kasymbek at the Republican meeting on improving the efficiency of transport and logistics infrastructure, Kazpravda.kz reports. As a result of creating competitive tariff rates and coordinated actions with partner countries by 2020, the volume of container transit traffic is planned to increase 10-fold up to 2 million TEUs, the minister said. In addition, according to the minister, in 2017, the volume of cargo transported in the past five years through the territory of Kazakhstan is 2.1 million tons. In 2013, this volume amounted to 1.56 million, in 2014-1.49 million, in 2015-1.2 million, in 2016-1.4 million tons. On a systematic basis, work is being carried out to increase the share of Kazakhstani carriers in the market of export, import and transit air transportation across Kazakhstan. In 2017, domestic carriers took the dominant position with a share of 52% of the volume of these transportations, Kasymbek said. He also noted that this year within the framework of 23 projects of Nurly Zhol, construction and reconstruction will cover 4.2 thousand kilometers of roads in all regions. Kazakhstan for the first time started such amount of work. Alstom buys Kazakhstan Temir Zholy s stake in joint venture Alstom has purchased Kazakhstan Temir Zholy s (KTZ) 25% stake in the EKZ joint venture. EKZ was established in June 2010 by Alstom, Transmashholding (TMH) and KTZ as a joint venture to deliver locomotives for Kazakhstan. It has a production facility in the capital city of Astana and is delivering 200 Prima T8 freight and 95 Prima M4 passenger locomotives. The freight locomotives are now fully assembled and the full assembly of passenger locomotives will start at the beginning of 2018. Alstom described Kazakhstan as an important hub linking Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Russia through the new Silk Road. Following the approval by the relevant authorities, Alstom will now hold a 75% stake (building on its initial 25% stake and a further 25% stake from KTZ in 2014) and TMH a 25% stake in the company. The move reaffirms Alstom s commitment to modernising Kazakhstan s rail infrastructure and follows the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Alstom chair Henri Poupart-Lafarge and KTZ president Kanat Alpysbayev for the modernisation of signalling at 25 stations. The heavy-haul range of Prima locomotives are mostly in operation in China, Azerbaijan, India and Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan has almost 20,000km of tracks, making it the third biggest 1,520 mm gauge railway in the world, according to Global Rail News. High tariffs in Kazakhstan prompt four foreign airlines to quit The development of the route network from Astana is facing the risk of losing foreign airlines which may reduce flights to Kazakhstan, Ibrahim Canliel, Chief Financial Officer at Air Astana said at a press conference on January 18, AzerNews reported. Over the past years, many airlines like Austrian Airlines, Asiana, KLM canceled their flights to Astana, further LOT airlines recently reduced the number of flights as well. Finnair, which launched flights to Astana last summer, suspended its flights in two months, he said. 6
According to Canliel, the reason for all this is the increase in prices. He further said that prices for aviation kerosene are rising. He said that The Energy Ministry of Kazakhstan assists in providing airlines with fuel, however, prices remain high. Prices have not declined, on the contrary, they are growing, oil is becoming more expensive: in particular, I can say that our prices did not fall in January, they increased. We will be only happy to see reduced fuel prices, but so far we do not see such a trend, Canliel said. Airlines in Kazakhstan are concerned about the abolition of the regulation of tariffs for airport services, said IATA Regional Manager for Central Asia Jordan Karamalakov. He reminded that in June 2017, the state abolished the regulation of prices for international flights that airports impose. This led to an uncontrolled increase in tariffs at Kazakhstan airports for international flights. Along with the high prices for aviation fuel, two foreign airlines canceled flights, several more reduce the frequency of flights. In late 2017, aviation fuel prices for foreign carriers grew by 20%, due to which foreign airlines fail to plan their aviation activities properly. In turn, SKAT commercial director Nikolai Buryakov noted that a dramatic increase in tariffs occurred in many Kazakh airports. For example, tariffs for the use of ground-based power sources at the Aktobe airport increased more than three-fold - from 9,000 tenge to 29,000 tenge, the tariffs for heating the salons have also been increased, which is especially affected in the winter. In Atyrau, the prices for passenger services increased by 20%, land power sources by 50%, cleaning of the salon by 224%, Buryakov said. AGRICULTURE Kazakhstan ups grain and flour shipment by rail in 2017 Kazakhstan s railways in 2017 transported 8.9 million tons of grain, including 5.8 million tons for export, and 3.2 million tons of flour, including 2.4 million tons for export, according to Oralkhan Kulakov, the head of JSC KTZ-Freight Transportation, a subdivision of Kazakhstan s national railways company Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ). Kulakov said at a news conference that last year, the traditional geography of sales markets of Kazakh grain and flour has been preserved. These are Uzbekistan (two million tons), Tajikistan (one million tons), Afghanistan (2.1 million tons), and Iran (two million tons). Rail transportation of grain increased: to Uzbekistan by 7%, to Iran by 26%, and to Afghanistan by 6%. To increase freight turnover and realize the export potential of the country, the Kazakh Ministry of Agriculture made a proposal to build a Class-A terminal in the territory of Afghanistan, which will allow the transportation of Kazakh flour evenly throughout the year, especially in summer. Last year, more than eight thousand tons of grain in containers was transported by the Kazakh railway company. The deliveries were made to Vietnam via the port of Lianyungang in China. Shipments of containers with grain were made to Mersin (Turkey), through the new Kars - Akhalkalaki railway line, and to China (Xinjiang). In 2018, JSC NC KTZ plans to ship 5 thousand containers with grain. The company plans to attract an additional 2,000 railcars, which will increase the grain storage fleet up to 11,000 cars, Times of Central Asia reported. Kazakhstan increases exports of lentils In 2016/17, Kazakhstan shipped record volumes of lentils at 94,000 tons on foreign markets, which is one of the major and perspective pulses for the country. Turkey (84,000 tons, or 89%) and Iran (4,500 tons, or 5%) were the main export destinations. 7
According to the Customs Control Committee at the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Kazakhstan, in July-November of the current season the export volumes totaled 37,300 tons, up 33% compared with the same period in 2016/17. In the first half of the season, Turkey traditionally became the main importer of Kazakh lentils, and in the reporting 5 months Kazakhstan supplied 86% of the general export volumes to the country. And Iran purchased another 7% (2,500 tons), APK Inform reported. Kazakhstan expands food retail business in nearby Russian regions Kazakh groceries are poised to be opened in Tyumen, Yekaterinburg and Novosibirsk regions of Russia, the Kazakh embassy in Russia reported. Presently, there are two stores of Kazakh food products in Omsk, their number is planned to be increased to 50. Next are the nearby major Russian cities -Tyumen, Ekaterinburg, Novosibirsk. The organizers intend to create a whole food network, the main feature of which will be natural, environmentally friendly food products manufactured in Kazakhstan, the embassy said. In the first half of 2018 in Omsk, it is planned to build seven pavilions with Kazakh food products. The opening of Kazakh stores in Russia is handled by KazMarket LLC. The trade turnover between the countries for January-August of 2017 increased by 37% compared to the same period of 2016 and amounted to $11 billion. Russian exports to Kazakhstan increased by 35% to $7.7 billion, while imports from Kazakhstan increased by 42% up to $3.3 billion. The volume of trade between Russia and Kazakhstan in January-August 2017 amounted to 26.4% of the Russian trade with the CIS countries, MENAFN reported. Russia extends ban restricting transit of goods from Ukraine to Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan Russian President Vladimir Putin amended his decree as of January 1, 2016 about transit transportations from Ukraine to Kazakhstan or Kyrgyzstan through the territory of the Russian Federation. Putin s amendment extends the decree for another six months. This decree established that international road and rail transportation of goods from the territory of Ukraine to the territory of Kazakhstan through Russian territory is carried out only from the territory of Belarus. In July 2016, Putin introduced changes to the decree to cover the transportations to Kyrgyzstan. In September 2016, Ukraine sent a request for consultations with Russia to the WTO on these restrictions. In the complaint, Ukraine said that Russian restrictions led to the reduction of exports of Ukrainian goods to the markets in Central, Middle Asia and the Caucasus in the first half of 2016 by 35.1%, including in Kazakhstan by 45.5%. The consultations that took place in November that year did not lead to a consensus. The filing of a request for consultations is the first stage of filing a lawsuit, the failure of consultations within 60 days makes it possible to initiate the creation of a panel of arbitrators, which Ukraine did in mid-february 2017. The Russian Federation, however, then blocked the convocation of the panel. In the case of a repeated application, the decision to convene an arbitration group is accepted automatically, according to UkrgroConsult. Kazakhstan imports over 18 times more poultry meat than it exports Kazakhstan remains a major importer of food. In this segment of the market, the balance of the country s foreign trade turnover is still negative. The republic imports more food products than it exports, despite the fact that there are more than enough prerequisites for domestic production. 8
In the list of imported food poultry meat is close to the top, despite the fact that poultry farming in recent years has become almost the flagship of the development of meat production. The amount of poultry in 10 years increased by 34.3%, from 29.5 million heads in 2007 to 39.61 million heads as of May 1, 2017, or by more than 10 million heads. The volume of slaughter in five years, from 2012 to 2017, increased by 24%, to 152.7 thousand tons, according to the Committee on Statistics of the Ministry of Education and Science of Kazakhstan and the Committee of State Revenues of the Ministry of Finance. In 2016, the export of poultry meat from Kazakhstan amounted to 8778.9 tons in the amount of $11.8 million. Meanwhile, the import of this product exceeded the level of 165,560 tons (165,560.9) for the amount of $131.4 million. That is, the import of poultry meat exceeded its exports 18.9 times in the commodity mass and 11.1 times in monetary terms. In 2015 export amounted to 7,896.7 tons worth 12.8 million and imports to 161,750.1 tons, or $144.4 million. Excess of imports over exports that year was 20.5 times in tons and 11.2 times in dollars. As can be seen, the negative foreign trade balance for the year declined in commodity performance, while in monetary terms it remained almost unchanged, which, in principle, can be explained by currency fluctuations. In 2016, the volume of commodity exports increased by 882.2 tons, from 7,896.7 to 8,778.9 tons, or by 11.2%. But imports also increased, of course, on a less dynamic scale, but in much higher commodity volumes, by 3,810.8 tons from 161,750.1 to 165,560.9 tons, up 2.4%. However, in cash value, both exports and imports went down. It means that Kazakhstan imported and exported more poultry meat for less money. At the same time, the import was stronger in dollar terms: exports accounted for 92%, and imports for 91%. However, these figures can be considered a positive signal for the reduction of the extremely negative foreign trade balance for poultry meat. But to determine the full picture of the market of poultry meat, there are still ambiguities. For example, it is still unclear how, in what dynamics and by what parameters the domestic consumption market of poultry meat is changing. What are the key factors in the volatility of the market? The fact that it is growing now causes few doubts, as imports, slaughter volumes and the actual number of birds grow. Secondly - in which direction do the consumption shares of imported and domestic avian meat change? The increase in export volumes does not mean much, as the product can be replaced, and domestic consumption can grow while the growth of exports may decrease. Over the past year 7 395 heads of breeding cattle were imported to Kazakhstan According to information published on the website of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Kazakhstan, according to operational information received from the regional territorial inspectorates of the State Inspectorate Committee in the agro-industrial complex, 7,395 heads of breeding cattle for production of milk and meat were brought to Kazakhstan in 2017. The purchase of breeding dairy and beef cattle was carried out by 38 agricultural enterprises from 11 regions, Zerno reports. In particular, 2,200 heads of milking cows (29.8%), 1,009 milk and meat producing ones (13.6%), and 4 186 ones meant to breed for slaughter (56.6%) were purchased. As indicated in the information of the department, livestock was imported from Russia, Germany, Ukraine, Holland and Hungary. Iran invests in meat processing plant construction in Semipalatinsk The Iranian company Agro Portal, with the help of Kazakh Invest, has invested in the construction of the halal meat processing plant in the Ondiris Industrial Zone in Semipalatinsk (Semei in Kazakh). 9
Foreign investment in the project stands at about $21.5 million. The construction of the plant will start this year, reported the Kazakh Invest press service on 18 January. The Iranian company signed a contract for the implementation of an investment project that provides investment and investment preferences with the Investment Committee of the Kazakh Ministry of Investment and Development. Agro Portal General Manager Amir Shekarchi said that favorable investment climate is created for foreign companies in the country. We closely cooperate with the Kazakh Invest representative office and the East Kazakhstan regional administration that fully support our project, he said. Modern, non-waste production lines will be installed at the facility and nearly 250 jobs will be created. Up to 2,000 heads of small cattle and 400 heads of cattle are expected to be processed per day. The production will be mainly export-oriented and up to 90% of production will be exported to Iran. Kazakh Invest will continue its activities to support this project for the construction of a meat processing plant. The agenda includes obtaining customs and tax preferences, subsidizing issues and visa support, said Kazakh Invest East Kazakhstan Regional Director Madina Baisalbayeva. The East Kazakhstan authorities will visit Iran in late January. The tour to the feeding stations and dairy farms, meetings with local agricultural equipment producers and partners interested in importing Kazakh meat products are scheduled. Projects in the field of agro-industrial sector will be offered to the potential investors. The agro-industrial sector is one of the priority sectors for attracting foreign direct investment in the National Investment Strategy for 2018-2022. The gross inflow of direct investments amounted to $135.2 million in agriculture in the period from 2015 through the first nine months of 2017. Kazakh Invest National Company has offices in China, France, Germany, UK, USA and Turkey to set up business contacts and identify areas of interest to foreign companies. It offers consultative support on issues related to implementing investment projects and organizing meetings and visits to Kazakhstan for interested companies, according to Astana Times. 10
EXHIBITIONS IN KAZAKHSTAN (January-March 2018) ShymkentBuild South Kazakhstan International Exhibition on Construction and Interiors, Ceramics and Stone, Fenestration, Heating and Ventilation, Road Construction 13 15 March 2018, Shymkent Organizer: Iteca www.shymkentbuild.kz AgriTek Astana Kazakhstan International Exhibition for Agriculture 14 16 March 2018, Astana Organizer: TNT Productions www.tntexpo.kz FarmTek Astana Kazakhstan International Exhibition for Animal Husbandry and Livestock Breeding 14 16 March 2018, Astana Organizer: TNT Productions www.tntexpo.kz KAZNEFTEGAZSERVICE-2018 Annual Conference on Oilfield Construction and Engineering 16 March 2018, Atyrau Organizer: KazService www.kazneftegazservice.com HomeDeco Kazakhstan International Exhibition for Home Textile and Interior Design 26 29 March 2018, Almaty Organizer: Turkel Fair Organization www.homedecofair.com Exhibitions dates are subject to change. For a complete overview and more information on exhibitions in Kazakhstan, please visit: www.iteca.kz www.astana-expo.kz www.expocentralasia.com www.tntexpo.kz www.atakentexpo.kz http://10times.com/ 11
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