ALMATY, July 13 (Xinhua) -- Kazakhstan's GDP expanded by 4.1 percent in the first half of 2026, Kazakh Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov said Monday.
Reporting to Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on the country's socio-economic development results in January-June, Bektenov said the manufacturing sector grew by 9.8 percent, while the transport sector expanded by 7.1 percent and construction by 15.2 percent.
He said trade grew by 5.7 percent, agriculture by 4.4 percent, and communications by 4.3 percent, according to the Kazakh presidential press service.
Investment in fixed capital reached 9.5 trillion tenge (about 20.5 billion U.S. dollars), while private investment increased by 21.4 percent. Annual inflation stood at 10.3 percent in June, Bektenov reported.
The prime minister also noted that Kazakhstan plans to launch 200 investment projects in the manufacturing sector this year with a total value of 1.7 trillion tenge, creating 17,000 permanent jobs.
In 2025, Kazakhstan's GDP expanded by 6.5 percent, surpassing 300 billion dollars for the first time. The government aims to maintain annual growth rates of 5-6 percent in the coming years and raise GDP to 450 billion dollars by 2029. ■