German Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz will pay an official visit to Kazakhstan on Sept. 16-17. During his visit, Scholz will meet with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and participate in the second meeting in the Central Asia + Germany format.
Yerbulat Seilekhanov, the chief researcher at the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies (KazISS), outlined key topics on the agenda and what to expect from the visit in a recent article.
Trade and investment highlights
Germany is a key strategic partner for Kazakhstan in Europe, with both countries sharing growing economic cooperation, strong political ties, and close collaboration on environmental and humanitarian issues, including through international organizations.
Bilateral relations have shown significant growth in trade, economic, and investment sectors. In 2023, trade turnover between Kazakhstan and Germany reached $3.9 billion, a 41% increase from 2022. Kazakhstan’s exports to Germany rose 3.1 times to $742.3 million, with oil and petroleum products, coal, ferroalloys, phosphorus, fish filets, and aircraft making up the majority.
Imports from Germany to Kazakhstan grew by 41.2%, totaling $3.1 billion, with pharmaceuticals, medical equipment, automobiles, agricultural machinery, and other industrial goods dominating the list. Kazakhstan accounts for 83% of Germany’s total trade with Central Asia.
Among the largest investment projects is a $50 billion green hydrogen production cluster in the Mangystau Region, led by the German-Swedish company Svevind. Another notable project is the construction of a $500 million lithium production plant in East Kazakhstan by Bergbau AG.
In 2023, Germany included Kazakhstan in a list of 34 countries eligible for preferential investment guarantees.