Friday, 24, July, 2026

Economy

At its today's meeting, the BOD of the Central Bank decided to keep the interest rate at 14% per annum, the Bank’s press service said.

Uzbekistan aims to increase production of gold to 175 tons, of silver to 500 tons, of uranium to 15 thousand tons, and of copper to 500 thousand tons by 2030, the presidential spokesman Sherzod Asadov said on his Facebook channel commenting the president Mirziyoyev’s inauguration of the AMMC's Copper Concentrator No 3.

Today, Shavkat Mirziyoyev attended the inauguration ceremony of the Copper Concentrator No. 3 at the Almalyk Mining and Metallurgical Combine, the presidential press service said.

President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has given directives to ensure Uzbekistan’s maximum energy independence, the chief of Project Office for Expediting Oil and Gas Reforms at the Presidential Administration Bekhzot Narmatov stated.

Timelines of Uzbekistan's accession to the World Trade Organization may take longer, beyond March, as some countries are delaying the review of their documents, stated the Presidential WTO Envoy and chief negotiator Azizbek Urunov said.

The Cabinet issued a resolution aiming to sell non-core assets of the Enter Engineering, Eriell Group, and Sanoat Energetika Guruhi (Saneg) Group of companies to pay off debts to employees, the budget, and banks.

Uzbekistan's gold and foreign exchange reserves reached $77.09 billion in value as of March 1, 2026, the Central Bank said in a report. This is a record high for the entire statistical period since 2013.

The National Statistics Committee announced the updating of the Minimum Consumer Expenditures (MCE) rate. The rate, used to determine the poverty line, has been increased by 6.9%—from 669,000 to 715,000 soums per person per month (from 22,000 to 23,000 soums per day).

President Mirziyoyev signed a decree on February 25 returning the Takhiatash Thermal Power Plant to the management of Thermal Power Plants and under the government control.

Uzbekistan and Afghanistan will expedite the taking effect of the preferential trade deal and significantly expand trade volumes, the Deputy PM Jamshid Khodjaev announced on his LinkedIn page.

Uzbekistan's public debt topped $46.8 billion as of late 2025, the Ministry of Economy and Finance said in a report today. Reportedly, $39.8 billion of this amount is external public debt, while $7 billion is domestic public debt.

According to the 2026 State Program, approved by the president Mirziyoyev, no state-owned bank will be privatized in 2026.

Uzbekistan plans to step up manufacturing of finished goods from domestically produced raw materials, to boost processing volumes, and revise customs duties on imported raw materials for local businesses, the president Shavkat Mirziyoyev announced at a meeting on February 13.

As of late 2025, Uzbekistan has set its national poverty line at 669,000 soums (approx. $54.5) per person per month, which is less than the half of the $126 threshold that the World Bank uses for lower middle-income countries.

Uzbekistan's gold and foreign exchange reserves reached $75.08 billion as of February 1, 2026, the highest figure ever, the Central Bank said in a report.

In 2025, the average monthly gross salary in Uzbekistan was 6.38 million soums (or approximately $507), marking an 18.9% increase to 2024, the National Statistics Committee said in a report.

Uzbekistan-bound remittances reached $18.9 billion in 2025, recording a 27.2% increase to $14.8 billion in 2024, the Central Bank (CB) said.

An "important strategic decision" has been made to increase oil and gas production at fields in Gazli area, Uzbekneftegaz said.

State-owned Uzbekneftegaz may join the M-25 gas field project as a trusted partner to hire specialists from American companies, including General Electric.

Uzbekistan's GDP grew by 7.7% in 2025, the Statistics Committee said in a report. Compared to 2024, this is up by 1 percentage point, with economic growth reached its highest since 2021. Inflation slowed to 7.3% (from 9.8% in 2024), and real growth in total household income reached 9.2% (from 11.7% a year earlier).