Kazakhstan exports a quarter more rice, but revenue is flat: what the numbers say

More tonnes, similar revenue

Kazakhstan exported 88,800 tonnes of rice in January–July 2026, compared with 70,900 tonnes a year earlier. That is a 25.3% rise in volume. Yet the Bureau of National Statistics reports that export value remained around $24.7 million. Dividing that value by tonnage gives roughly $278 per tonne, down from about $348 a year earlier. This is an aggregate calculation, not the sale price of any individual rice variety; product mix and contracts matter.

Production and imports

Domestic output reached 145,000 tonnes in January–August, 18.6% higher year on year. Sales on the domestic market in January–July totalled 70,500 tonnes, up 3.9%. These figures should not be added into a single supply balance because the time windows and accounting stages differ.

Imports in the first seven months fell from 16,700 to 4,900 tonnes. Exports were about 18 times imports. Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Russia, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan were among the main destinations.

Why it matters

A volume record is not necessarily a revenue record. To assess whether growers and processors gained, one would need costs for water, milling and transport, and prices by variety. The new data show stronger external demand but do not by themselves establish higher profits.

Source: https://stat.gov.kz/ru/news/v-kazakhstane-uvelichilos-proizvodstvo-i-eksport-risa/

Cover image: a thematic illustration, not a photograph of the reported event.