Kazakhstan's wheat exports to Afghanistan increased by 2.9 times in the first eight months of 2025, while sunflower oil exports increased by 3.1 times. There is scope for further growth in supplies, and overall, the potential for Kazakhstan's wheat exports in the new season is estimated at 9.6 million tons. This was announced by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Economy of the Republic of Kazakhstan Serik Zhumangarin at the Kazakh-Afghan Business Forum in Shymkent, according to the prime minister's press service.
"Kazakhstan is interested in expanding the export of high-quality grain, flour, rice, and sugar to Afghanistan. Production volumes of these products in Kazakhstan are growing year after year thanks to the use of modern agricultural technologies," Zhumangarin said.
According to him, mutual trade between Kazakhstan and Afghanistan amounted to $545.2 million in 2024 and $335.9 million in the first eight months of 2025. Afghanistan is one of Kazakhstan's most important trading partners in South Asia, with extensive potential for developing cooperation both bilaterally and across the region.
Furthermore, during a bilateral meeting between Serik Zhumangarin and Afghan Minister of Trade and Industry Nuriddin Azizi, the prospects for creating a Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan transit corridor, including the construction of a Herat-Turgundi railway route, were discussed. This Trans-Afghan Corridor, with access to the Pakistani port of Karachi, combined with the North-South project, will open access to ports on the Persian Gulf and India. Together, these projects will form a new trade axis, the Central Asia-South Asia (CASA).