FEB. 23 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) — More employers in Kazakhstan said they would increase workers’ salaries after the 20% devaluation of the tenge this month. Copper producer Kazakhmys and the government of Aktobe region both said they would increase salaries by 10%. The devaluation has stoked fears of inflation.
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(News report from Issue No. 173, published on Feb. 26 2014)
FEB. 18 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) — Betraying ordinary Kazakh’s nervousness and distrust after the devaluation of the tenge on Feb. 11 by 20%, rumours of a banking collapse spread fast via SMS and triggered a run on several banks.
The banks — Bank Tsenter Kredit, Alliance Bank and Kaspii Bank — all denied that they were in danger of collapsing.
At branches of Kaspii Bank, though, hundreds of people still queued throughout Feb. 18 and Feb. 19 to withdraw their savings despite assurances from the Central Bank that there was no reason to panic.
Saltanat was one of roughly 100 people queuing to withdraw their savings from a Kaspii Bank branch in Almaty.
“They said there won’t be any problem, but why should I believe them?” he said. “They said nothing about the devaluation either. They’re not going to take our money away!”
Confidence in Kazakhstan’s banking sector and the tenge is low.
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(News report from Issue No. 172, published on Feb. 19 2014)
FEB. 18 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) — The Syr Darya river, flowing through southern Kazakhstan, has flooded, drowning and freezing dozens of cattle and horses, media reported. Photographs showed dead horses frozen in ice. Farmers say that they were not given enough warning by the local authorities to defend their cattle and land.
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(News report from Issue No. 172, published on Feb. 19 2014)
FEB. 17 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) — ATF Bank, bought by Kazakh investors from Italy’s Unicredit in 2013, made a profit last year for the first time since 2007, media reported. ATF Bank said it made a profit of $9.7m in 2013. The bank is now officially owned by Galymzhan Yessenov, son-in-law of the Almaty’s mayor Akhmetzhan Yessimov.
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(News report from Issue No. 172, published on Feb. 19 2014)
FEB. 17 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) — Kenes Rakishev, closely linked to members of the Kazakh elite, officially became chairman of BTA Bank. In December, Mr Rakishev agreed a deal worth nearly $1b with Kazkommertsbank to buy a 93% stake in BTA Bank from the government. BTA Bank, whose former chairman is Mukhtar Ablyazov who allegedly embezzled billions from the bank, has a high proportion of non-performing loans.
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(News report from Issue No. 172, published on Feb. 19 2014)
FEB. 14 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) — Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev ordered officials to pump $5.4b into the economy from the national reserve fund to boost growth in 2014 and 2015. Mr Nazarbayev said he wanted to maintain growth rates of 6-7%. His interjection underlines the fragile state of Kazakhstan’s economy.
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(News report from Issue No. 172, published on Feb. 19 2014)
FEB. 15 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) — The sudden 20% devaluation of the Kazakh tenge on Feb. 11 generated anger and despair across Kazakhstan.
Police detained roughly 50 protesters in rare antigovernment demonstrations in Astana and Almaty and rumours of an imminent collapse triggered a run on several high street banks.
In central Almaty the manager of a store selling underwear could barely constrain herself. She had no customers and was angry.
“This devaluation is terrible and we don’t want it. In our store, prices will not increase, but the cost of living will surely soar,” she said.
At a clothing store in a busy shopping mall, Gaukhar shared this view.
“This could turn into a nightmare,” said the shop assistant. “While prices will undoubtedly increase, we haven’t heard a word from our directors to raise our wages.”
One of the big fears for Kazakhstan’s policy makers is that rather than making the economy more competitive, the devaluation will simply stoke inflation. Some large industries, including the steel plant owned by the Luxembourg-based ArcelorMittal has already said it will increase its workers’ salaries by 10%.
There were mixed signals in Almaty. Many shopkeepers said that they hadn’t yet put up their prices but that they soon would.
“There’s already been a significant change in prices of between 500 and 1,000 (tenge) per pair of shoes,” said Assel as she tendered to her shop in Almaty’s Green Bazaar. “We’ve seen a lower turnout of customers this past week. They come in, try on the shoes but then go out empty-handed.”
Assel’s shoes were imported mainly from China and an increase of 500 to 1,000 tenge per pair represented a rise of roughly 20%.
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(News report from Issue No. 172, published on Feb. 19 2014)
FEB. 14 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) — Figure-skater Denis Ten won Kazakhstan’s first medal of the 2014 Sochi Olympics. Mr Ten, 20 came third in the men’s short programme figure-skating. The medal is important to Kazakhstan which wants to host the 2022 Winter Olympics.
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(News report from Issue No. 172, published on Feb. 19 2014)
FEB. 15 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) — In the week since the Kazakh Central Bank decided to de-value the tenge by 20%, prices in shops have risen, stoking fears of inflation. A Conway Bulletin correspondent in Almaty interviewed shoppers and stores owners for their feelings on the devaluation.
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(News report from Issue No. 172, published on Feb. 19 2014)
FEB. 7 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) — Kazakh PM Serik Akhmetov ordered his government to produce a plan to boost the county’s food processing industry, Kazakh media reported. Mr Akhmetov said that although Kazakhstan produces plenty of food, most of its processed food is imported.
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(News report from Issue No. 171, published on Feb. 12 2014)
