Trade relations between Uzbekistan and France have witnessed growth in recent years, with turnover for January to June 2024 reaching $563.4mn, a substantial rise from $163.7mn in 2022 and $388.6mn in 2023.
Over the past three years, exports from Uzbekistan to France surged from $64.8mn in 2022 to $384.9mn in 2024, marking a 493.5% increase. This includes a 202.6% rise from 2022 to 2023 and a 96.6% rise from 2023 to 2024, indicating a strengthening of trade relations and a growing demand for Uzbek products in the French market.
On the import side, imports from France to Uzbekistan increased from $98.9mn in 2022 to $192.7mn in 2023, representing a 94.9% rise. However, imports slightly decreased to $178.5mn in 2024, a drop of about 7.4%, reflecting some fluctuation in trade dynamics.
Uzbekistan’s foreign trade turnover for the first half of 2024 reached $31.8bn, marking an 8.5% increase compared to the same period in 2023.
In the first quarter of 2024 alone, Uzbekistan’s foreign trade turnover with France amounted to $337.1mn, reflecting a 63% increase from $206.8mn in 2023. The total trade turnover between the two nations reached $984.7mn in 2023, up 190% from $339.5mn in 2022.
Between January 2019 and December 2023, the cumulative trade turnover was $2.1bn, with Uzbekistan exporting $775.6mn and importing $1.3bn. France ranked sixth among the countries with the largest volume of foreign trade turnover with Uzbekistan.
In 2022, Uzbekistan’s key exports to France included radioactive chemicals worth $121mn, platinum at $5.06mn, and vegetable saps at $1.75mn. Despite these figures, the exports from Uzbekistan to France have decreased at an annualized rate of 16.7% over the past five years, from $131mn in 2017 to $52.3mn in 2022.
Meanwhile, France’s exports to Uzbekistan in 2022 featured scented mixtures valued at $51.1mn, industrial fatty acids, oils, and alcohol at $47.5mn, and packaged medicaments at $16.8mn. French exports to Uzbekistan have increased at an annualized rate of 16.3% over the past five years, rising from $50.3mn in 2017 to $107mn in 2022.
Uzbekistan is viewed by France as a key strategic partner in Central Asia, recognized for its balanced and forward-looking foreign policy. France appreciates the regional policy of the president of Uzbekistan, which focuses on mutual benefit, equality, pragmatism, and consensus, contributing to the stability and development of Central Asia.
France remains an active partner in various economic, investment, financial, and technical spheres. The number of joint ventures and projects involving French companies has tripled in recent years, with the current portfolio of active projects in Uzbekistan exceeding €5bn. There are 47 enterprises with French capital in Uzbekistan, including 17 wholly French-owned enterprises.
Several significant investment projects are currently underway in Uzbekistan with French involvement. These include the construction of a 100 MW solar photovoltaic station in Nurabad district, Samarkand region by Total Eren, geological exploration for uranium mining with Orano Mining, and the construction of a 1600 MW combined-cycle power plant in Syrdarya province by a consortium including EDF.
Additionally, water sector transformation projects in Tashkent and Surkhandarya province are being implemented with SUEZ, and Veolia has taken on the management of Tashkent’s heating network under a 30-year public-private partnership (PPP) agreement.
From November 2022 to March 2023, the Louvre in France hosted an exhibition titled "Treasures of the Oases of Uzbekistan at the Crossroads of Caravan Routes." Moreover, from November 2022 to June 2023, the Institute of the Arab World in France featured the exhibition "Road to Samarkand. Wonders of Silk and Gold."
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