Tajik business circles’ interest in expansion of cooperation with Chinese companies reportedly promotes the latter’s entering Tajikistan’s market.
“Interest of Tajik business circles in China is not random, it is well-formed. Therefore, it is not wonder that Chinese companies try to enter Tajikistan’s market,” said Yan Honbo (phonetically spelled), Director of the Yunnan Provincial Development and Reform Commission, according to Tajikistan’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI).
During a meeting with CCI top managers in Dushanbe, Mr. Yan reportedly noted on October 29 that Chinese companies have invested in Tajikistan’s energy sector, metallurgy industry, infrastructure, tourism and agrarian sector.
“We want to invest in Tajikistan and establish here large enterprises with complete production cycle,” Mr. Yan added.
According to the statistical data from Tajikistan’s CCI, more than 70 Tajik-Chinese joint ventures and more than 200 Chinese now operate in Tajikistan. China reportedly participates in implementation of more than 50 investment projects in Tajikistan.
According to data from the State Committee on Investments and State-owned Property Management (GosKomInvest) of Tajikistan, a total volume of China’s direct investments in Tajikistan’s economy amounts to more than 1 billion U.S. dollars.
Last year, the two-way trade between Tajikistan and China reportedly amounted to 600 million U.S. dollars, while over the first eight months of this year, it has reached nearly 434 million U.S. dollars.
China is Tajikistan’s dominant economic partner. Tajikistan’s external debt to China as of the beginning of 2018 was 1.2 billion U.S. dollars or 41.3 percent of all external debt.
Tajikistan has traditionally courted state-led investment and external loans from larger regional neighbors, including China. For the last 10 years, China remains Tajikistan’s main investor, with investments over 2.25 billion U.S. dollars.
