Trade turnover between Russia and Kazakhstan increased by 15% in the first five months of 2026

The trade turnover between Russia and Kazakhstan in January–May 2026 increased by more than 15% and exceeded $12.2 billion. This was announced on July 24 by Deputy Minister of Economic Development Vladimir Ilyichev at the XXII Forum of Interregional Cooperation between the Regions of the Russian Federation and Kazakhstan.

"Trade between our countries is developing quite well, despite the current events and some problematic issues that we have. Nevertheless, our trade turnover increased by more than 15% in January–May of this year. It exceeded $12.2 billion," TASS quoted him as saying.

According to Ilyichev, the current dynamics allows us to count on achieving the target turnover of $30 billion before 2030.

In addition, Vice Minister of Trade and Integration of Kazakhstan Aidar Abildabekov said that in 2025, the volume of mutual trade between the two countries exceeded $27 billion. In the first five months of 2026, the indicator also increased compared to the same period last year.

Abildabekov noted that Russia and Kazakhstan continue to move towards achieving the goal of increasing trade turnover to $30 billion, which was previously set by the heads of the two states.

Road work: Putin's visit to Kazakhstan will boost transport projects in Eurasia

How did the Russian President's trip to Astana begin and what can the leaders discuss face to face?

On May 29, President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev pointed out that Russia's cooperation with the republic has reached an unprecedented level, and this is the merit of Russian President Vladimir Putin. His visit to Astana demonstrated qualitative changes in bilateral cooperation, Tokayev added.

He also noted that the Russian leader's visit to the republic confirms the special status of relations between Astana and Moscow. For further cooperation, the parties have formed a list of 177 joint projects, with investments amounting to about $53 billion.