Total trade
Zhambyl Region’s total trade rose 13.8% to $656.3 million in H1 2026, but that growth masks a sharp reversal in the balance. Exports collapsed 58.4% to $101.6 million, while imports surged 66.8% to $554.7 million, the most dramatic shift among all regions.
China remains the largest trading partner at $255.3 million, up 42.0%. Japan recorded an exceptional increase from an almost negligible base, with turnover rising 11,738.9% to $114.1 million.
Exports
Exports fell sharply in H1 2026, declining 58.4% to $101.6 million. Food products accounted for 18.9% and also contracted, down 41.9%.
Portland cement, all of it shipped to Kyrgyzstan, NPK fertilizers and sodium cyanides are exported in modest volumes, mainly to neighboring markets.
Imports
Imports surged 66.8% to $554.7 million in H1 2026, with almost all of the increase attributable to a single product.
Electric generating sets worth $113.4 million, sourced entirely from Japan, account for virtually all of the increase in imports.
The purchase of Japanese generators is clearly a one-off event. In the entire historical series, imports from Japan had never exceeded $7 million a year, while the $113-114 million figure appears for the first time in this half-year. This is a specific procurement for an energy project, not the beginning of a sustained trade channel with Japan.
Zhambyl Region experienced a sharp shift in its trade balance toward imports in H1 2026, but most of that movement stems from a single one-off purchase of Japanese electric generators. Without it, the picture would be far more subdued. The 58.4% fall in exports remains a more important structural signal than the dramatic but temporary import spike.
National Bureau of Economic Research specifically for EconomyKZ.org
