The Central Asia+Italy Business Platform Forum took place in Astana on September 18, where B5+ITALY was officially launched. The platform has already outlined specific areas for further cooperation: increasing non-commodity exports from Kazakhstan to Italy, launching joint production facilities, developing regional trade and logistics hubs, and expanding direct transport links, according to the Kazakh Ministry of Trade and Integration.
The forum was attended by deputy ministers of relevant ministries from Italy, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan, the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Tajikistan to Kazakhstan, as well as the Minister of Trade and Integration of Kazakhstan, Arman Shakkaliyev.
Italy is Kazakhstan’s third-largest trading partner globally and the largest among the European Union countries. In 2025, trade turnover between the two countries amounted to 16.9 billion US dollars, of which approximately 15.6 billion US dollars were Kazakh exports.
However, the next stage of partnership involves not just increasing trade volumes, but changing its structure. Kazakhstan has identified around 100 commodity items with the potential for additional export growth to Italy worth 307 million US dollars. The list includes products from the metallurgical, chemical, food, construction, and mechanical engineering industries.
“We are interested in making the platform a practical mechanism for direct interaction between Italian businesses and Central Asian countries, from trade and investment to industrial cooperation, transport, logistics, and new technologies,” said Shakkaliyev.
This involves a transition from the traditional trade model to creating a joint production base. Currently, more than 300 enterprises with Italian capital operate in Kazakhstan, and the volume of Italian investments over the years of independence has exceeded 9.5 billion US dollars.
“Our task is to move from a ‘supplier-buyer’ model to a deeper partnership model: production localization, creation of joint ventures, technology transfer, and the formation of new production chains,” noted Shakkaliyev.
In parallel, the possibility of forming a trade and industrial hub based in Shymkent is being considered, through which Italian and Kazakh goods could be distributed to other regions of the country.
For Italian businesses, Kazakhstan is seen as a connecting link between European and Asian markets, and infrastructure development opens up opportunities not only for transit but also for the placement of warehouse complexes, logistics centers, and regional distribution platforms.
