Azerbaijan-Kazakhstan trade turnover hits $183 million in January-April 2023

The trade turnover between Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan increased by $50 million in the first 4 months of 2023.

Kazakh Minister of Trade and Integration Serik Zhumangarin made the remarks at a meeting with Azerbaijani Energy Minister Parviz Shahbazov in the margins of the Astana International Forum (AIF 2023), Trend reports.

"Trade cooperation between our countries shows significant growth. In January-April of this year the trade turnover amounted to $183 million," he said.

The minister recalled that in 2022 the figure reached $462 million.

"This dynamic gives us a reason to believe that this year we will exceed that figure. At the moment we have identified 110 types of goods worth $300 million, which Kazakhstan can offer to the Azerbaijani side," Zhumangarin noted.

The minister said that during the business mission of Kazakh entrepreneurs to Azerbaijan, eight contracts worth $55 million were signed.

“I propose to continue this practice. Now we are waiting for a return mission from Azerbaijan. We can also offer the Azerbaijani side 110 new types of goods worth about $300 million to further build up trade and economic relations,” the minister said.

The minister stressed that Kazakhstan also expressed a desire to establish supplies of fruits and vegetables from Azerbaijan, especially to the western part of the country.

By the end of the year, 1.125 million tons of oil from Kazakhstan will be transported via the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, Azerbaijani Energy Minister Parviz Shahbazov said during a meeting with Zhuminagarin, on the sidelines of the Astana International Forum (AIF 2023).

"Every month, Azerbaijan receives 12 to 14 tankers carrying Kazakhstani oil. This is a satisfying development. The initial agreement between the parties involved the transportation of 1.5 million tons of oil this year. However, considering that deliveries began in April this year, we will be able to transport 1.125 million tons of oil by the end of 2023," he said.

Shahbazov emphasized that this is just the beginning of productive cooperation and added that, in this regard, the Baku-Supsa pipeline can be an excellent alternative for the delivery of Kazakhstani oil.

The two Caspian nations have the potential to develop and improve the transportation infrastructure to increase trade between them and facilitate the transit of goods to other regions.

The key focus of the cooperation in transportation and logistics is leveraging the Middle Corridor and integrating the Zangazur multi-modal route into it. Realization of the corridor’s full potential is expected to contribute to increasing the bilateral trade turnover.

The Trans-Caspian East-West Corridor, known shortly as the Middle Corridor, is crucial to reviving the ancient Silk Road. It traverses on rail and road routes across Georgia, Azerbaijan and the Caspian Sea and continues toward China on the Turkmenistan-Uzbekistan-Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan routes.