Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Economy Serik Zhumangarin presented Kazakhstan's investment and economic potential for American businesses in Washington at a roundtable discussion of the US-Kazakhstan Business Council (USKZBC) at the US Chamber of Commerce. The event took place ahead of the annual meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
The American side was represented by Kush Choksi, Senior Vice President for the Middle East, Turkey, and Central Asia at the US Chamber of Commerce, and top managers from leading corporations such as Chevron, Brownstein, Bectel, ExxonMobil, Citi, Mastercard, Boeing, LanzaJet, and many others.
Serik Zhumangarin thanked the participants for the meeting, noting that Kazakhstan and the US maintain a high level of economic relations. More than 600 companies with American capital are operating in our country. Among them are Chevron, ExxonMobil, General Electric, Pfizer, Honeywell, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, John Deere, and others. American business is represented in all key industries, from finance and energy to engineering, pharmaceuticals, and logistics.
"Kazakhstan is an attractive country for American business. The country's GDP will exceed $330 billion this year, which is about 60% of the economy of Central Asia. At the end of 2024, GDP per capita exceeded $14,000, and in terms of purchasing power parity, it exceeded $44,000. The medium-term goal is to reach a GDP volume of $450 billion by 2029,” emphasized Serik Zhumangarin.
The Deputy Prime Minister presented the key directions of the new proactive economic growth policy, aimed at ensuring a stable annual growth rate of 5–6%. This growth is expected to be achieved through strong development financial institutions capable of providing large-scale funding for high-performance export-oriented projects in deep and medium processing of raw materials and agricultural products. The total investment potential of these areas is estimated at over $100 billion.
It is expected that industry’s contribution to GDP will increase due to the growing share of processed goods and the creation of maximum added value within the country.
Additional growth drivers include railway engineering, automotive manufacturing, fertilizer production, solid waste recycling, development of new deposits, and expansion of the mineral resource base, including rare earth metals. Special attention is also given to the energy sector and public utilities infrastructure, where projects worth around $100 billion are planned for implementation within the next five years.
“To implement these large-scale projects, we invite leading international companies with industry expertise. Their involvement will contribute not only to increasing production efficiency but also to developing human capital, integrating with global value chains, and strengthening Kazakhstan’s reputation as a reliable partner,” - noted Serik Zhumangarin, inviting U.S. companies to mutually beneficial cooperation.
Reference Information
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world’s largest business association, uniting over 3 million companies, around 3,000 regional chambers of commerce, and 830 industry associations.
The U.S.–Kazakhstan Business Council (USKZBC) operates under the Chamber and brings together 27 companies conducting business in Kazakhstan, including Chevron, ExxonMobil, Fluor, General Electric, Apple, Bechtel, Boeing, Caterpillar, Citigroup, Mastercard, Halliburton, IBM, and others.
In 2024, trade turnover between Kazakhstan and the United States amounted to $4.2 billion, a 4.1% increase compared to the previous year. Kazakhstan’s exports to the U.S. grew by 30.7%, reaching $2 billion, while imports from the U.S. decreased by 11.7%, amounting to $2.2 billion.
More than 720 enterprises with American participation currently operate in Kazakhstan, 20 of which are large and medium-sized companies. These enterprises are active in oil and gas, manufacturing, engineering, IT, and pharmaceuticals.
