Central Asia in May 2026: the most important developments in economy
Central Asia's economic news in May 2026 was dominated by Kazakhstan and its dealings with Russia. On 28 May Russia signed a $16.5 billion deal to build Kazakhstan's first nuclear power plant, and President Tokayev thanked Vladimir Putin for supporting the project. The two countries are also carrying out seven joint investment projects, and Tokayev expects bilateral trade to reach $30 billion in the near future. Other Russia-Kazakhstan items were less smooth: a report pointed to financial strains and mining disputes around the nuclear cooperation, Kazakhstan said it planned to stop buying electricity from Russia by 2027, and Russia told Kazakhstan it could not transit oil through the Druzhba pipeline, although the transit of Russian oil across Kazakhstan was due to be discussed. Astana and Moscow were also discussing a gas pipeline through Kazakhstan to China.
Oil was the second main theme. Kazakhstan announced it would stay in OPEC+ after the United Arab Emirates left the group, and joined six other members in a statement on 4 May. Oil output at the Tengiz field shrank after an accident, according to sources.
Kazakhstan also widened its trade and investment links elsewhere. It invested billions in a new railway route to Europe and pursued a $10 billion railway linking Europe and China. Turkey and Kazakhstan agreed to build drones together, a Trump-linked tungsten deal in Kazakhstan advanced, and Astana's light rail system opened on 16 and 17 May. Russia also launched its new Soyuz-5 rocket for the first time from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
by WorldBrief & Maksim Micheliov | AI-generated summary
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