Tajikistan's foreign trade up
By Kamila Aliyeva
The volume of foreign trade turnover of Tajikistan in January 2018 amounted to $443 million.
The trade turnover increased by 75.6 percent, or by $190.7 million, compared to the same period of the previous year, according to statistical data, Central Asian media outlets reported.
In January, the exports of goods amounted to $86.8 million that is 29 percent or $19.2 million more than in the same period of 2017.
The imports of products to the republic last month reached $356.2 million, showing a 92.5 percent or $171.2 million increase compared to January 2017.
At the same time, imports of petroleum products went up by 22 percent and wheat - by 95.6 percent. Meanwhile, flour import decreased by 63 percent.
Tajikistan traded with 79 foreign countries in January 2018. Russia and Kazakhstan remain the main partners of the republic.
The volume of the Tajik-Russian trade turnover in January of this year amounted to over $80 million, while the Tajik-Kazakh trade turnover stood at the level of $71 million.
The volume of foreign trade turnover of Tajikistan in 2017 amounted to $3.9 billion, thus showing an increase of 1.1 percent, according to the Statistics Agency under the President of Tajikistan.
Last year, Tajikistan maintained foreign trade relations with 109 countries around the world. In 2017, the volume of the Tajik-Russian turnover amounted to $936 million and the Tajik-Kazakh turnover - $838 million. The volume of trade with Russia decreased by 9.7 percent and with Kazakhstan, by contrast, increased by 24 percent.
Tajikistan is a landlocked, Central Asian country that shares borders with Afghanistan, China, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan. Tajik exports are comprised mainly of aluminum, agricultural goods, and light industry.
The low level of product diversification and reliance upon natural resources makes the Tajik economy especially susceptible to volatile commodity prices.
The imports of energy resources and advanced manufacturing products, which arrive largely from China, Russia, and Kazakhstan, have resulted in a significant trade deficit.
Nevertheless, Tajikistan has taken steps to increase its global and regional integration through WTO accession in 2013 and by participating in the CIS free trade agreement.
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Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva
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