Uzbekistan: Economy#
Uzbekistan is a landlocked country with more than 60% of the population living in densely populated rural communities. Since its independence in September 1991, the government maintained its Soviet-style command economy with subsidies and tight controls on production and prices. Despite ongoing efforts to diversify crops, Uzbekistani agriculture remains largely centered on cotton; Uzbekistan is the world's fifth largest cotton exporter and sixth largest producer. Uzbekistan's growth has been driven primarily by state-led investments, and export of natural gas, gold, and cotton provides a significant share of foreign exchange earnings. In 2015, Russia’s Gazprom announced it would reduce its natural gas imports from Uzbekistan but Tashkent continues to export natural gas to China and Chinese investments in the country have substantially increased.While aware of the need to improve the investment climate, the government continues to intervene in the business sector and has not addressed the impediments to foreign investment in the country. In the past, Uzbekistani authorities have accused US and other foreign companies operating in Uzbekistan of violating Uzbekistani laws and have frozen and seized their assets. At the same time, the Uzbekistani Government has actively courted several major US and international corporations, offering financing and tax advantages.
In 2003, the government accepted Article VIII obligations under the IMF, providing for full currency convertibility. However, strict currency controls and tightening of borders have lessened the effects of convertibility and have also led to some shortages that have further stifled economic activity. Recently, lower global commodity prices and economic slowdown in neighboring Russia and China have been hurting Uzbekistan's trade and investment and worsening its problem of currency shortage.
Economic Facts#
| GDP (purchasing power parity) | $202.3 billion (2016 est.) $190.8 billion (2015 est.) $176.7 billion (2014 est.) note: data are in 2016 dollars |
|---|---|
| GDP (official exchange rate) | $66.8 billion (2015 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 6% (2016 est.) 8% (2015 est.) 8.1% (2014 est.) |
| GDP - per capita (PPP) | $6,500 (2016 est.) $6,200 (2015 est.) $5,800 (2014 est.) note: data are in 2016 dollars |
| Gross national saving | 30.9% of GDP (2016 est.) 31% of GDP (2015 est.) 31.6% of GDP (2014 est.) |
| GDP - composition, by end use | household consumption: 55.3% government consumption: 17.2% investment in fixed capital: 24.4% investment in inventories: 3% exports of goods and services: 28.6% imports of goods and services: -28.5% (2016 est.) |
| GDP - composition, by sector of origin | agriculture: 19.3% industry: 33.9% services: 46.8% (2016 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | cotton, vegetables, fruits, grain; livestock |
| Industries | textiles, food processing, machine building, metallurgy, mining, hydrocarbon extraction, chemicals |
| Industrial production growth rate | 4.5% (2016 est.) |
| Labor force | 17.8 million (2016 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 25.9% industry: 13.2% services: 60.9% (2012 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 4.9% (2016 est.) 5% (2015 est.) note: official data; another 20% are underemployed |
| Population below poverty line | 17% (2011 est.) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.8% highest 10%: 29.6% (2003) |
| Distribution of family income - Gini index | 36.8 (2003) 44.7 (1998) |
| Budget | revenues: $21.09 billion expenditures: $21.23 billion (2016 est.) |
| Taxes and other revenues | 31.6% of GDP (2016 est.) |
| Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-) | -0.2% of GDP (2016 est.) |
| Public debt | 8.3% of GDP (2015 est.) 7.1% of GDP (2014 est.) |
| Fiscal year | calendar year |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 11.5% (2016 est.) 10% (2015 est.) note: official data; based on independent analysis of consumer prices, inflation reached 22% in 2012 |
| Commercial bank prime lending rate | 12.44% (31 December 2013 est.) 11.2% (31 December 2012 est.) |
| Stock of narrow money | $7.52 billion (31 December 2016 est.) $7.162 billion (31 December 2015 est.) |
| Stock of broad money | $18.15 billion (31 December 2016 est.) $16.26 billion (31 December 2015 est.) |
| Stock of domestic credit | $12.09 billion (31 December 2016 est.) $11.78 billion (31 December 2015 est.) |
| Market value of publicly traded shares | $NA (31 December 2012) $715.3 million (31 December 2006) |
| Current account balance | $64 million (2016 est.) $93 million (2015 est.) |
| Exports | $11.11 billion (2016 est.) $11.35 billion (2015 est.) |
| Exports - commodities | energy products, cotton, gold, mineral fertilizers, ferrous and nonferrous metals, textiles, foodstuffs, machinery, automobiles |
| Exports - partners | Switzerland 25.8%, China 17.6%, Kazakhstan 14.2%, Turkey 9.9%, Russia 8.4%, Bangladesh 6.9% (2015) |
| Imports | $11.61 billion (2016 est.) $11.81 billion (2015 est.) |
| Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, chemicals, ferrous and nonferrous metals |
| Imports - partners | China 20.8%, Russia 20.8%, South Korea 12%, Kazakhstan 10.8%, Turkey 4.6%, Germany 4.4% (2015) |
| Reserves of foreign exchange and gold | $14.5 billion (31 December 2016 est.) $15 billion (31 December 2015 est.) |
| Debt - external | $15.75 billion (31 December 2016 est.) $13.92 billion (31 December 2015 est.) |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - at home | $NA |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad | $NA |
| Exchange rates | Uzbekistani soum (UZS) per US dollar - 2,963.7 (2016 est.) 2,569.6 (2015 est.) 2,569.6 (2014 est.) 2,311.4 (2013 est.) 1,890.1 (2012 est.) |