NUMBER OF THE DAY
This is how strongly Kyrgyzstan’s economy grew in the first 9 months of 2025.
📈 Boom in the mountains: Driven by construction, industry, trade, and mining, GDP rose to USD 13.7 billion. Since the start of the war in Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan— a member of the Eurasian Customs Union—has developed into a new trading hub for Russia.
⚠️ The flip side: Public debt increased by USD 1.9 billion year-on-year to USD 8.4 billion. Relations with the West are tense: the US and UK have placed several Kyrgyz banks on their blacklists, accusing them of enabling Russian sanctions evasion.
🔍 Watch: Kyrgyzstan’s boom shows how forcefully Western sanctions are reshaping economic power axes. The country is currently benefiting from rerouted trade, but this also risks deeper dependence on Russia and escalating frictions with Western players.
Good to know: About 25% of Kyrgyzstan’s GDP comes from remittances sent by Kyrgyz working abroad—many of them employed in Russia.
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