Kazakhstan's Economy Grows 3% in Q1 2026, Driven by Non-Oil Sectors

Kazakhstan's economy expanded by 3% in the first quarter of 2026, according to a government report. First Vice Minister of National Economy Azamat Amrin highlighted that this growth was achieved without reliance on the oil sector.

The real sector grew by 2.1%, while the services sector increased by 3.7%. The most significant growth drivers were construction, transport, and manufacturing.

Investment in fixed capital rose by 6.4%, reaching 3.5 trillion tenge. Private investment surged by 20.9%. Major capital inflows were recorded in electricity and gas supply (up 2.5 times), information and communications (up 2 times), and agriculture (+70.6%). High investment growth was noted in the Zhambyl, Turkestan, Almaty, East Kazakhstan, and Ulytau regions.

Foreign trade turnover for January-February reached $21.7 billion. Goods exports totaled $12 billion, including $4.5 billion from processed goods imports amounted to $9.6 billion, resulting in a trade surplus exceeding $2.4 billion.

The manufacturing industry accelerated its growth to 8.5%, with positive dynamics observed in 18 regions. Amrin pointed to qualitative changes in the economic structure: for the second consecutive year, the share of manufacturing (12.7%) has exceeded that of mining.

"The feature of this year is that, due to prevailing circumstances, the economy is growing without the oil sector," emphasized First Vice Minister Azamat Amrin.

The share of the oil sector in GDP has more than halved—from 16.5% in 2010 to 8.1% in 2024.

"To ensure sustainable development, it is important to continue focusing on further diversification of the economy, which will allow us to escape the middle-income trap," added Amrin.

Within manufacturing, growth was driven by mechanical engineering (+21.9%), pharmaceuticals (+46%), production of metal products (+39.3%), and construction materials (+37.1%).

The construction sector grew by 14.8%, with 3.9 million square meters of housing commissioned during the period.The best indicators for housing commissioning were shown by Abai region,Ulytauregion,Karaganda region,and Shymkent city.

Based on seven key indicators,growth was recorded across eight regions at the end of Q1 including Astana city Almaty city Turkestan region and Zhambyl region