Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev flew to Dushanbe on October 9 to attend two official meetings with other heads of state. At the Russia-Central Asia summit, Tokayev proposed to establish a joint council of ministers focused on environmental issues, especially focusing on water security, and a nuclear fuel cycle regional council. During the meeting, Tokayev also said that “due to historical, political, economic, and humanitarian factors, [...] Russia has been, remains, and will be an ally and strategic partner of Kazakhstan.”
The day before the CIS meeting, Vladimir Putin met with Ilham Aliyev. The Russian president admitted responsibility for the damage that led to an Azerbaijan Airlines plane crash last December. During his first meeting with his Azerbaijani counterpart since the incident, Putin pledged material compensation for the victims. [Read more here.]
At the CIS meeting in Tajikistan on October 10, Tokayev again raised the issue of climate change, proposing the creation of a regional forecasting center to monitor environmental threats. In previous weeks, Tokayev had distanced himself from global policies countering climate change, calling these initiatives “a fraud.”
Kazakhstan and Russia signed a memorandum for the construction of a new gas pipeline. On October 9, ahead of the St. Petersburg International Gas Forum, deputy prime minister Roman Sklyar and Gazprom’s chairman Alexei Miller signed documents strengthening cooperation agreements on processing gas from the Karachaganak field in north-western Kazakhstan at the Orenburg Gas Processing Plant in Russia.
On October 8, Tokayev signed an order to establish a working group on parliamentary reform. State Counsellor Yerlan Karin was picked as the group’s head. Presidential aides Yerzhan Zhienbayev and Arman Kyrykbayev will serve as deputies. The group will include deputies, political leaders, members of the scientific community, and some members of civil society.
Kazakhstan’s Central Bank increased interest rates on October 10, from 16.5% to 18% in an effort to stabilize inflation. Inflation had exceeded forecasts in recent months and the regulator decided to intervene. Another stabilizing measure the Central Bank has taken is the purchase of gold. According to the World Gold Council, Kazakhstan bought 8 tons of gold in August, about half of all global purchases. Since the beginning of the year, Kazakhstan’s Central Bank is the second-largest buyer of gold.
The Financial Monitoring Agency said on October 7 that bank card top-ups of more than 500,000 tenge ($920) will trigger an additional level of security. The sender’s social security number (IIN) will be required, in addition to the receiver’s IIN.
The volume of bank loans to individuals has increased by 14.7% since the beginning of the year, the Agency for the Regulation of the Financial Market said on October 8. The Agency noted that the share of non-performing loans (NPLs) remains low at 3.5%. An ING report published on October 6, noted “increased durable goods purchases and higher spending on services” ahead of the VAT increase scheduled for next January.
ActivistsNotExtremists, an informal monitoring group, noted on October 8 that the mayor’s offices in Astana, Almaty, and Shymkent all refused to allow demonstrations that activists had planned to protest the increase of VAT to 16% and to show dissatisfaction with galloping inflation. Activists submitted three requests to each city administration. The group also noted that, since July 2020, local government had issued at least 713 rejections to citizens applying for permission to hold a demonstration.
Air Astana, the flagship carrier, announced on October 8 that his long-time CEO Peter Foster will step down in March next year. The board of directors announced that former CFO Ibrahim Canliel will become CEO. Last year, Air Astana listed its shares in London and Astana. The company is 41% owned by state holding Samruk-Kazyna, while a subsidiary of British BAE Systems holds a 16.95% stake.
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