The external debt of Kazakhstan has reached $161.9 billion, an increase of $1.3 billion over the past year to October 2023, according to the National Bank of Kazakhstan. The main creditors of Kazakhstan are the Netherlands ($42.5 billion), Great Britain ($14 billion), international organizations ($13 billion), Russia ($12.5 billion), the USA ($11.3 billion), France ($11.2 billion), Bermuda ($9.4 billion), and China ($9.2 billion).

Considering the structure of Kazakhstan’s external debt as a whole, the bulk of loans is occupied by inter-company debt ($92.2 billion), obligations of other sectors ($44.4 billion), Government bodies ($12.5 billion), the banking sector ($10.6 billion), and the National Bank ($2.1 billion).

According to the latest data, the volume of total external debt of all countries in the world by the end of 2022 reached a record $92 trillion. As of April of last year, the countries with the highest national debt in the world were considered to be the U.S.A. ($29.46 trillion), Japan ($13.05 trillion), China ($10.12 trillion), France ($3.3 trillion), and Italy ($3.17 trillion). In terms of its debt to GDP ratio, Kazakhstan ranks in a respectable 148^th position with a debt to GDP ratio of 27.4% as compares to first place Japan, which has a debt to GDP ratio of 262%.

Earlier, the Ministry of the National Economy of Kazakhstan proposed setting a limit on the external debt for 2024 for Samruk-Kazyna and the national holding, Baiterek – the two companies which most often borrow from other countries. This limit would be in the amount of almost $12.5 billion for Samruk-Kazyna, and just over $5 billion for Baiterek.

In spring of the last year, President Tokayev declared that for Kazakhstan to reach the category of countries with high level incomes, the economy of the country would need to grow 6% annually. As of November of last year, this indicator was at 4.9%.

The further development of e-commerce in Kazakhstan was considered at a government meeting on January 16^th, chaired by Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov. The Minister of Trade and Integration, Arman Shakkaliev reported that in 2023 the volume of e-commerce in Kazakhstan exceeded 2.2 trillion tenge ($4.8 billion), equating to 13% of all retail trade, a 0.5% rise on the previous year. Household goods, clothing and footwear, food, cosmetics, and medicines are the most popular goods purchased online.

The Ministry is looking to increase the share of e-commerce to 20% by 2030 by expanding the representation of domestic goods on popular marketplaces, developing warehouse and logistics infrastructure, and protecting consumer rights. The Prime Minister noted that globally, by 2025 the share of online trade is expected to exceed 25% of total retail. In Kazakhstan, a significant market share is occupied by foreign online marketplaces.

“We must use this opportunity as an additional sales channel for Kazakh products on the world stage. At the same time, we need to develop domestic online stores. To do this, it is necessary to ensure the uninterrupted operation of payment systems, transport and logistics infrastructure, and courier services,” Smailov said.

The Prime Minister instructed the relevant bodies to find effective solutions for the development of domestic online stores and broader representation of domestic commodity producers on foreign online marketplaces within a month. “We need our own bonded warehouses, which would simplify the process of delivering goods to both domestic customers and foreign ones. Therefore, it is necessary to launch the construction of bonded warehouses in Astana, Almaty, and Shymkent this year,” Smailov said.