BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 30. Kazakhstan’s
current account recorded a surplus of $2.4 billion in the first
half of 2026, compared with a deficit of $3.6 billion in the same
period of 2025, according to the National Bank of Kazakhstan.
Azat Uskenbayev, director of the National Bank’s Balance of
Payments Department, said this in a commentary on Kazakhstan’s
external sector for the first half of 2026.
“The state of Kazakhstan’s external sector has improved
significantly. In the first half of 2026, the current account of
the balance of payments recorded a surplus of $2.4 billion,
compared with a deficit of $3.6 billion in the same period of 2025.
In the second quarter of 2026, the surplus amounted to $3.2
billion. The main factor behind the improvement was a significant
strengthening of the trade balance amid faster export growth,”
Uskenbayev said.
Exports under the balance of payments increased 27.1%
year-on-year to $48.5 billion in the first half of 2026. Positive
dynamics were recorded across more than 80% of commodity
categories.
The growth in exports was supported by higher global prices for
Kazakhstan’s main export commodities, including oil, uranium,
metals, ores and grain, according to the National Bank.
Goods imports increased 6.2% to $32.3 billion. The growth was
mainly production-oriented, driven by higher purchases of
intermediate goods, which rose 13.8%, and investment goods, which
increased 7.9%.
At the same time, imports of non-food consumer goods continued
to decline, falling 11.2%, mainly due to lower imports of cars,
clothing and footwear. The year-on-year decline in this category
has continued since the fourth quarter of 2023.
