Uzbekistan's international trade from January to August 2025 topped $51.4 billion, an increase of 19.8% (an increase of $8.5 billion) compared to the same period last year,  the National Statistics Committee said in a report.

Exports during this period valued at $22.98 billion (an increase of 31.3%), while imports reached $28.45 billion (a 11.8%increase). Due to the outpacing growth in exports, the trade deficit decreased by $2.5 billion—from $7.94 billion to $5.47 billion, primarily due to gold.

Year-to-date, Uzbekistan has exported $8.42 billion worth of gold, almost 1.7 times more than the same period last year. These shipments exceeded the total for all of 2024, as well as the record-breaking 2023.

Exports grew in August, excluding gold

In monthly terms, exports excluding gold increased by 19.6%, while excluding gold, energy, and services,all increased by 17.5%. Exports excluding gold, energy, and services have demonstrated the highest growth rates since the beginning of the year.

In August, exports to China continued to decline, falling 23.5% month-on-month. Exports to Kazakhstan (by 29.3%) and Kyrgyzstan (by 16.2%) also decreased.

At the same time, exports to Afghanistan have shown the largest growth this year, increasing by 55.4% month-on-month. High growth rates were also observed for exports to Turkey (by 40%). Exports to Russia increased by 13.8% in August.

Imports grew sharply, driven by China

From April to August, imports from China increased by 44%. However, imports also declined from January to March, and began to grow at a rapid pace in April. By comparison, over the same period, exports to China fell by 12.1%.

According to him, the trade war with the US led to cheaper Chinese goods and stimulated export growth to other countries. The decline in exports to China is explained by problems with aggregate demand that have been observed there for several years. The appreciation of the real exchange rate since May could have provided an additional impetus for import growth.

Another interesting trend: imports from India continue to grow both in 2024 and this year. Over the past five months, imports from India have increased by 55.3% (in 2024, the growth was 29%).

Furthermore, this year, imports have also accelerated with partners such as Belarus (up 43%) and Kazakhstan (up 24.7%).

Trading Partners

In the first eight months, trade with China, Russia, Afghanistan, India, France, and Germany has accelerated, while some destinations (Korea, Turkey, and Turkmenistan) have seen a decline.

China remains Uzbekistan's largest trading partner, with turnover amounting to $9.7 billion, a 21% increase over the 2024 target. Russia ranked second with $8.3 billion (up 6.5%). Kazakhstan recovered its position after last year's decline, reaching $3 billion (up 15%).

The most rapid growth was recorded in trade with Afghanistan, reaching $1 billion (up 51%). Trade with India is growing rapidly – ​​$858 million (+42%), the UAE – $823 million (+90.1%), and Pakistan – $363.4 million (+27%).

Trade with Turkey has continued to decline in recent years – to $1.9 billion (-3.6%). The Republic of Korea has also shown a steady decline: $1.1 billion compared to $1.3 billion last year (-13.3%). Mutual trade with the United States decreased by 7.6% to $574.5 million.

Europe is also strengthening its position. Trade with France increased to $991 million (+18.5%), with Germany – to $854 million (25%), and with the Netherlands – to $265.5 million (+52.8%).

Belarus increased its turnover by a third, to $600 million.

Energy Resources

Uzbekistan imported $1.3 billion worth of oil and petroleum products in the first eight months of the year, a 7.8% decrease compared to the same period last year. Gasoline supplies decreased to $1.02 million (-2%).

Oil product exports also decreased during this period, to $399.6 million (-2%) compared to January-August 2024.

Coal imports increased to $124.7 million (+5.7%), while electricity supplies from other countries decreased to $75.5 million (-14.2%). Meanwhile, electricity exports increased sharply by 52.2%, reaching $107.2 million.

Uzbekistan imported $885.9 million worth of gas, a 27.9% decrease compared to the same period last year ($1.15 billion). A significant portion of these supplies, $286.3 million, occurred in June. In July, imports totaled $162.2 million, compared to $151.9 million in August. Against this backdrop, gas exports also increased by 24.1% to $494.7 million.