Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Bolat NURGALIYEV
chancery: (temporary) 3421 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington, DC
20008
telephone: [1] (202) 333-4504 through 4507
FAX: [1] (202) 333-4509
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission: Ambassador A. Elizabeth JONES
embassy: 99/97 Furmanova Street, Almaty, Republic of Kazakstan 480012
mailing address: use embassy street address
telephone: [7] (3272) 63-39-05, 63-13-75, 63-24-26
FAX: [7] (3272) 63-29-42
Flag: sky blue background representing the endless sky and a gold sun with 32 rays soaring above a golden steppe eagle in the center; on the hoist side is a "national ornamentation" in yellow
Economy ———-
Economic overview: Kazakstan, the second largest of the former Soviet states in territory, possesses enormous untapped fossil-fuel reserves as well as plentiful supplies of other minerals and metals. It also has considerable agricultural potential with its vast steppe lands accommodating both livestock and grain production. Kazakstan's industrial sector rests on the extraction and processing of these natural resources and also on a relatively large machine building sector specializing in construction equipment, tractors, agricultural machinery, and some defense items. The breakup of the USSR and the collapse of demand for Kazakstan's traditional heavy industry products have resulted in a sharp contraction of the economy since 1991, with the steepest annual decline occurring in 1994. The government has pursued a moderate program of economic reform and privatization, resulting in a gradual lifting of state controls over economic activity and a shifting of assets into the private sector. Nevertheless, government control over key sectors of the economy remains strong. Moreover, continued lack of pipeline transportation for expanded oil exports has closed off a likely source of economic recovery.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $46.9 billion (1995 estimate as extrapolated from World Bank estimate for 1994)
GDP real growth rate: -8.9% (1995 est.)
GDP per capita: $2,700 (1995 est.)
GDP composition by sector: agriculture: 28.5% industry: 41.5% services: 30% (1991 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 60.3% (1995 est.)