Page 8 - Kazakh Outlook 2024

3.0 External Environment
The central bank has adjusted its projections for the current account deficit for the years 2023, 2024 and 2025. The new projections stand at 3.5%, 2.9% and 2.1% of GDP respectively, compared with the earlier figures of 3.4%, 2.8% and 1.9%.
Kazakhstan has been actively attempting to develop its international trade transit potential, with Europe and China looking for routes that bypass Russia due to the difficulties posed by Western sanctions imposed against Moscow over its war in Ukraine.
A recent World Bank report, titled "Middle Trade and Transport Corridor – Policies and Investments to Triple Freight Volumes and Halve Travel Time by 2030", predicts a substantial increase in trade along the Middle Corridor that connects Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Georgia. This corridor, also connecting China and the EU, could see tripled volumes and halved travel time by 2030 with the right investments and policies. Antonella Bassani, the World Bank's deputy president for Europe and Central Asia, highlighted the corridor's potential significance for the economies of the countries along the route. The report anticipates a 37% increase in trade in relation to Azerbaijan, Georgia and Kazakhstan, and a 28% rise in trade between these countries and the EU.
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