Kyrgyzstan Economy - 2022

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Economic overview

Kyrgyzstan is a landlocked, mountainous, lower middle income country with an economy dominated by minerals extraction, agriculture, and reliance on remittances from citizens working abroad. Cotton, wool, and meat are the main agricultural products, although only cotton is exported in any quantity. Other exports include gold, mercury, uranium, natural gas, and - in some years - electricity. The country has sought to attract foreign investment to expand its export base, including construction of hydroelectric dams, but a difficult investment climate and an ongoing legal battle with a Canadian firm over the joint ownership structure of the nation’s largest gold mine deter potential investors. Remittances from Kyrgyz migrant workers, predominantly in Russia and Kazakhstan, are equivalent to more than one-quarter of Kyrgyzstan’s GDP.

 

Following independence, Kyrgyzstan rapidly implemented market reforms, such as improving the regulatory system and instituting land reform. In 1998, Kyrgyzstan was the first Commonwealth of Independent States country to be accepted into the World Trade Organization. The government has privatized much of its ownership shares in public enterprises. Despite these reforms, the country suffered a severe drop in production in the early 1990s and has again faced slow growth in recent years as the global financial crisis and declining oil prices have dampened economies across Central Asia. The Kyrgyz government remains dependent on foreign donor support to finance its annual budget deficit of approximately 3 to 5% of GDP.

 

Kyrgyz leaders hope the country’s August 2015 accession to the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) will bolster trade and investment, but slowing economies in Russia and China and low commodity prices continue to hamper economic growth. Large-scale trade and investment pledged by Kyrgyz leaders has been slow to develop. Many Kyrgyz entrepreneurs and politicians complain that non-tariff measures imposed by other EAEU member states are hurting certain sectors of the Kyrgyz economy, such as meat and dairy production, in which they have comparative advantage. Since acceding to the EAEU, the Kyrgyz Republic has continued harmonizing its laws and regulations to meet EAEU standards, though many local entrepreneurs believe this process as disjointed and incomplete. Kyrgyzstan’s economic development continues to be hampered by corruption, lack of administrative transparency, lack of diversity in domestic industries, and difficulty attracting foreign aid and investment.

Real GDP (purchasing power parity)

$31.02 billion (2020 est.)

$33.95 billion (2019 est.)

$32.46 billion (2018 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars

Real GDP growth rate

4.6% (2017 est.)

4.3% (2016 est.)

3.9% (2015 est.)

Real GDP per capita

$4,700 (2020 est.)

$5,300 (2019 est.)

$5,100 (2018 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars

GDP (official exchange rate)

$8.442 billion (2019 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

1.1% (2019 est.)

1.5% (2018 est.)

3.1% (2017 est.)

Credit ratings

Moody's rating: B2 (2015)

Standard & Poors rating: NR (2016)

note: The year refers to the year in which the current credit rating was first obtained.

GDP - composition, by sector of origin

agriculture: 14.6% (2017 est.)

industry: 31.2% (2017 est.)

services: 54.2% (2017 est.)

GDP - composition, by end use

household consumption: 85.4% (2017 est.)

government consumption: 18.9% (2017 est.)

investment in fixed capital: 33.2% (2017 est.)

investment in inventories: 1.8% (2017 est.)

exports of goods and services: 39.7% (2017 est.)

imports of goods and services: -79% (2017 est.)

Agricultural products

milk, potatoes, sugar beet, maize, wheat, barley, tomatoes, watermelons, onions, carrots/turnips

Industries

small machinery, textiles, food processing, cement, shoes, lumber, refrigerators, furniture, electric motors, gold, rare earth metals

Industrial production growth rate

10.9% (2017 est.)

Labor force

2.841 million (2017 est.)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture: 48%

industry: 12.5%

services: 39.5% (2005 est.)

Unemployment rate

3.18% (2019 est.)

2.59% (2018 est.)

Youth unemployment rate (ages 15-24)

total: 8.5%

male: 7.6%

female: 10% (2020 est.)

Population below poverty line

20.1% (2019 est.)

Gini Index coefficient - distribution of family income

27.7 (2018 est.)

29 (2001)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 4.4%

highest 10%: 22.9% (2014 est.)

Budget

revenues: 2.169 billion (2017 est.)

expenditures: 2.409 billion (2017 est.)

Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)

-3.2% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

Public debt

56% of GDP (2017 est.)

55.9% of GDP (2016 est.)

Taxes and other revenues

28.7% (of GDP) (2017 est.)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Current account balance

-$306 million (2017 est.)

-$792 million (2016 est.)

Exports

$3.11 billion (2019 est.) note: data are in current year dollars

$2.73 billion (2018 est.) note: data are in current year dollars

$2.352 billion (2017 est.)

Exports - partners

United Kingdom 56%, Kazakhstan 13%, Russia 13%, Uzbekistan 5% (2019)

Exports - commodities

gold, precious metals, various beans, refined petroleum, scrap copper (2019)

Imports

$5.67 billion (2019 est.) note: data are in current year dollars

$5.86 billion (2018 est.) note: data are in current year dollars

$4.953 billion (2017 est.)

Imports - partners

China 53%, Russia 17%, Kazakhstan 7%, Uzbekistan 7%, Turkey 5% (2019)

Imports - commodities

refined petroleum, footwear, clothing and apparel, broadcasting equipment, walnuts (2019)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

$2.177 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$1.97 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

Debt - external

$8.372 billion (2019 est.)

$8.066 billion (2018 est.)

Exchange rates

soms (KGS) per US dollar -

68.35 (2017 est.)

69.914 (2016 est.)

69.914 (2015 est.)

64.462 (2014 est.)

53.654 (2013 est.)

NOTE: The information regarding Kyrgyzstan on this page is re-published from the 2022 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Kyrgyzstan 2022 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Kyrgyzstan 2022 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.