China’s trade dominance in Central Asia hits new heights

In 2025, China solidified its position as the leading trading partner for the five Central Asian nations—Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan—surpassing $106.3 billion in total trade. This marks a 12% increase from 2024 and the highest trade volume ever recorded in historical data.

Chinese analysts hailed the milestone as a breakthrough in trade and economic cooperation with Central Asia, noting that bilateral trade exceeded the $100 billion threshold for the first time, Caliber.Az reports, citing Uzbek media.

Trade between China and the region has maintained a positive trajectory for five consecutive years. In 2021, the total volume was slightly above $49.5 billion, meaning that trade in goods and services has more than doubled over four years. Central Asian countries’ share of China’s overall foreign trade also rose from 0.8% to 1.5%.

Several factors have contributed to this surge, including the growth of cross-border e-commerce, expansion of logistics and warehousing infrastructure, and enhanced partnerships in intercity payment systems. The “China–Central Asia Free Trade and Cooperation Platform,” designed to promote trade interaction, industrial integration, and production-education linkages, has also played a pivotal role.

China positions as a top investor in Central Asia, with cumulative investments exceeding $50 billion. Strategic infrastructure projects, such as the China–Kyrgyzstan–Uzbekistan railway, are progressing alongside other regional transport initiatives.

According to China’s General Administration of Customs, Kazakhstan was the most active partner in 2025, recording a trade volume of over $48.6 billion. Kyrgyzstan followed at roughly $27.2 billion, while Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan reached $16.2 billion and $10 billion, respectively. Tajikistan ranked fifth at $4.3 billion.

However, reported figures differ slightly from Central Asian sources. Uzbekistan’s National Statistics Committee cited a trade volume of $17.2 billion with China, reflecting a discrepancy of approximately $1 billion compared with Chinese estimates.

By Vafa Guliyeva