Leaders of the business circles of the ECO member states gathered in Tashkent.

The 16th Summit of the Heads of State of the Economic Cooperation Organization will begin tomorrow, November 9. As part of this Summit, the 5th Business Forum of the organization is being held in Tashkent.

According to the event program, the heads of the chambers of commerce and industry of the member states and the chairpersons of economic councils will address the event, informing participants about the work carried out within the framework of the organization’s activities, the financial situation of their countries, and the results of bilateral and multilateral cooperation.

So, what are the statistics on business, trade turnover, and attraction of investments within the ECO?

Today, the Economic Cooperation Organization includes ten countries: Azerbaijan, Afghanistan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Türkiye, and Uzbekistan.

In recent years, Uzbekistan’s cooperation within the Economic Cooperation Organization has intensified significantly.

According to the Center for Economic Research and Reforms, in 2021, Uzbekistan’s trade turnover with member countries of this organization increased by 35.1 percent and reached $11.2 billion.

The growth trend continued in 2022, with trade turnover increasing by 10.4 percent to $12.4 billion.

The share of the ECO in Uzbekistan’s foreign trade is 24.7 percent. Notably, exports reached $5.75 billion, up 6.3 percent from 2021. Imports increased by $6.62 billion, an increase of 14.3 percent. Last year, a third of total exports – 29.8 percent – went to ECO countries.

Last year, the largest share in trade turnover belonged to Kazakhstan (37.5 percent) and Türkiye (26.3 percent). They are followed by Kyrgyzstan (10.2), Turkmenistan (7.5), Afghanistan (6.1), Tajikistan (5.5), Iran (3.5), Pakistan (1.9) and Azerbaijan (1.5). Uzbekistan’s trade turnover with the ECO countries exceeded $1.13 trillion.

Analyzing the indicators recorded for 9 months this year, we can confidently say that Uzbekistan’s cooperation within the ECO has significantly intensified. Thus, during the reporting period, trade turnover within the ECO amounted to $9.2 billion, and the share of participating countries in the total trade turnover of Uzbekistan reached 20.5 percent. Export volumes amounted to $4.2 billion, and imports – $5 billion.

It should be noted that the ECO provides a platform for discussing ways to develop trade and investment opportunities in South and Central Asia and the Middle East. Within the framework of the structure, several documents will be developed aimed at deepening economic cooperation, including the Framework Agreement on Free Trade, Transit Trade, Transport and Transit.

Bekhruz Khudoyberdiyev, UzA