ALMATY, Oct. 21 (Xinhua) -- Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan strive to increase bilateral trade turnover to 10 billion U.S. dollars, Kazakhstan's Finance Minister Madi Takiyev said Wednesday.
Bilateral trade between the two countries rose 29 percent year on year to 3.7 billion dollars in the first nine months of 2026, while the full-year figure for 2025 stood at 4.7 billion dollars, the Kazinform news agency quoted Takiyev as saying.
Takiyev also noted that Kazakhstan's parliament had ratified an agreement to open representative offices of the two countries' customs services. The offices will provide practical and theoretical assistance to domestic and foreign entrepreneurs as part of efforts to achieve the 10-billion-dollar trade target.
Signed in Tashkent on Nov. 15, 2025, the agreement provides for the prompt exchange of information, coordination of customs-related measures and closer cooperation between authorities of the two countries, Takiyev said.
There are currently 11 border crossing points along the Kazakhstan-Uzbekistan border, including eight road crossings and three railway crossings. ■