Kazakhstan Posts First Monthly GDP Contraction Since 2021
2026-02-18 08:15
By
Czyrill Jean Coloma
1 min. read
Kazakhstan’s short-term economic indicator, a measure of monthly GDP growth, contracted by 2.8% year-on-year in January 2026, reversing the four-month high of 9.4% growth recorded in the previous month.
It marked the first economic contraction since March 2021, primarily driven by declines in industry (-6.6% vs 7.5%) and mining and quarrying (-19.9% vs 9.4%).
Growth also slowed in several other sectors, including manufacturing (4.4% vs 6.4%), agriculture, forestry and fishing (2.6% vs 5.9%), construction (14.4% vs 15.9%), wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles (2.9% vs 8.9%), and transportation and storage (5.9% vs 20.4%).
Regionally, economic activity fell most sharply in Atyrau (-33.2%), Batys Kazakhstan (-20.1%), Akmola (-10.0%), and Shygys Kazakhstan (-1.6%).
In contrast, the strongest growth was recorded in Turkistan (20.2%), Zhetisu (14.2%), and Soltustik Kazakhstan (13.1%).