Kazakhstan’s exports of products and some types of machinery and equipment to the countries of the Customs Union grew in 2013, Minister of Trade of the Eurasian Economic Commission Andrei Slepnev said during his visit to Kazakhstan on April 4. “According to the information of the commission, the volume of export of Kazakhstan to the Customs Union countries shrank by 5.9 percent in 2013 compared to 2012 due to lower export prices for mineral products, chemical industry products, metals and metal products. However, the volume of export of some types of machinery and technical products grew in 2013. The export of machinery and equipment increased 4.8 times, export of refrigerators and coolers increased 4.5 times, export of metal-rolling machines grew 5.5 times and export of means of ground transportation grew 2.6 times,” Slepnev said. According to him, in 2013, about 1,200 trucks were exported from Kazakhstan to Russia, a figure nine times higher than in 2012. The export of dump trucks intended for off-road use has also begun. The export of food and primary products for its production from Kazakhstan to the Customs Union doubled last year. The export of grains increased 2.7 times and the export of chocolate products is stably increasing and rose 19 percent in 2013.
Sessions of the Seventh Astana Economic Forum (AEF) and the Second World Anti-Crisis Conference (WAC) will be held as online video conferences on the G-Global information and communication platform from March 27 to April 30. Delegates of the AEF and WAC, which will be held in Astana on May 21-23, are invited to take part in a series of advance online video conferences. From now until the end of April, about 50 online video sessions are planned to be held on the G-Global platform. During the conferences, online discussions will continue on the draft of the World Anti-Crisis Plan Concept that is scheduled to be adopted at the WAC under the auspices of the UN General Assembly. For the first time in international practice, speakers at the AEF and WAC will be able to discuss key issues and urgent problems of the world economy, as well as express their views concerning upcoming events in an online format. Video conferencing in online mode enables a maximum number of participants to conduct discussions, preparing the ground for recommendations that will emerge from the sessions of the AEF and WAC. The schedule of online conferences can be found on the G-Global website.
Tax authorities in Almaty rendered 1,005,903 tax services both online and in data collection and processing centres over the first quarter of 2014. This is 201,236 services or 25 percent more compared to the same period in 2013, the tax department of Almaty reported. Centres of data collection and processing rendered services to 373,193 tax payers. The average time in queues was 3:44 minutes. The Almaty tax authorities daily render services to 8,000-10,000 people, a press statement informs. Introduction of the electronic control system in 2012 led to an increase in the number of services rendered and the improvement of their quality. The system helped to resolve queuing issues and establish effective control over the quality of services rendered.
First Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Bakytzhan Sagintayev took part in a regular session of the Council of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) held in Moscow on March 27-28. The prime minister’s press service reported that further development of the Customs Union and Single Economic Space was discussed at the session. One of the main issues on the agenda was the preparation of a draft treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union. Joint activities on the draft treaty as well as provisions designed to meet the mutual interests of member states and foster further integration were considered as well. In key sectors of the economy such as industrial and agro-industrial policy, monetary policy and financial markets, the parties came to an understanding, including in the draft treaty opportunities for the mutually beneficial development of these industries. The meeting also discussed issues of cooperation in the development of competition, transport, energy and natural monopolies.
