The Astana Times - Kazakhstan and Italy plan to develop the list of industrial projects as bilateral trade turnover hits $9.2 billion, said Vice Minister of Industry and Infrastructure Development Marat Karabayev during a Sept. 23 meeting with Italy’s delegation on the sidelines of the tenth Forum of Machine-Builders of Kazakhstan, reported the ministry’s press service.
The meeting participants discussed the development of partnerships in mechanical engineering, metallurgy, chemistry, and light and construction industries.
“Today, Kazakhstan places a great emphasis on implementing investment projects in the industry as one of the instruments for the country’s industrialization,” said Karabayev.
Kazakhstan’s exports to Italy more than doubled, reaching $8.7 billion in seven months, and imports rose by 9.7 percent.
The country mainly imports taps, valves, pumps, and ventilators from Italy, while exporting ferroalloys, raw aluminum, the scrap of precious materials, steel products, and lead.
At the forum, which addresses a wide range of issues such as mechanisms of economic diversification and import substitution faced by regional and international engineering companies, Kazakh Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov said that up to 50 companies are considering relocating to Kazakhstan. He also stressed the role of the machinery industry in the country’s economic development, citing the increased production volume.
