Kazakhstan and China deepen co-operation in trade, economy and e-commerce

Kazakhstan and China deepen co-operation in trade, economy and e-commerce

Minister of Trade and Integration of the Republic of Kazakhstan Arman Shakkaliev held a meeting with the Minister of Commerce of the People's Republic of China Wang Wentao, who arrived in Kazakhstan as part of the state visit of the President of the People's Republic of China Xi Jinping. The meeting addressed issues of trade and economic co-operation, export promotion and e-commerce.

As stressed by the Minister of Trade of Kazakhstan, this meeting before the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation is of an important nature, as it defines the key directions in the implementation of the agreements reached in the trade agenda. The year 2024 is significant for further promotion of the global initiative «One Belt – One Road».

«At the meeting in November last year, we talked about reaching the volume of mutual trade up to $40 billion Today, a new ambitious goal was formulated to significantly increase trade turnover. We are ready to meet the needs of the Chinese side by offering guaranteed volumes of standardised products of high quality. Most importantly, we can offer a reliable partnership to Kazakhstani business, united under the auspices of the export promotion company QazTrade and the National Institute for the Development and Promotion of Non-Resource Exports of the Export Credit Agency», - said the Minister of Trade of Kazakhstan Arman Shakkaliev.

The main focus of work with the People's Republic of China is to develop cooperation with each province based on the principle of regionalisation, taking into account their sector specificity and economic component. This approach is already being adapted with the provinces of Sichuan, Jiangsu and Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Arman Shakkaliyev added: «We are already seeing positive results in key agricultural commodities for China. Compared to the same period last year, trade with XUAR grew by 50 per cent, including a 35.3 per cent increase in exports. Exports to Sichuan Province rose nearly 30 per cent, while Jiangsu recorded an export growth of more than 10 times. A major «Central Asia-Jiangsu» trade centre will open in Nanjing this September».

An important area is the promotion of goods from Central Asia and the integration of the region's products on the Central Asia Online Pavilion or C5+China trading platform on e-commerce platforms in China. Co-operation is established with major marketplaces in China: Alibaba.com in the B2B segment and jd.com in the B2C segment.

The Minister also emphasised: «Within the framework of improving trade and transport connectivity with the PRC, we propose to initiate a similar regional project «China-Central Asia», which will cover the areas of e-commerce, trade connectivity and improving access of Central Asian products to the market of the People's Republic of China. Here we propose to consider involving China Exim Bank as partners and their resources from the Chinese side and QazTrade from our side, which will provide methodological and advisory support in the implementation of this project in partnership with colleagues from the People's Republic of China».

Minister of Commerce of the People's Republic of China Wang Wentao noted that during the visit, the Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of China will sign a road map with the Government of Kazakhstan, covering such sectors as trade, energy, agriculture, transport and others.

«As part of our co-operation on e-commerce, we can establish a working group on this area within our sub-committee. We are also ready to work closely with QazTrade to assist Kazakh exporters in the Chinese market. We have a Trade Development Bureau under our Ministry, which will fulfil practical tasks within the framework of this co-operation».

In conclusion, Arman Shakkaliev noted that Kazakhstan intends to continue participation in the Shanghai Expo and expressed his gratitude to the Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of China for its assistance and support in organising the participation of Kazakh companies.