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According to a report from Transparency International, Uzbekistan ranked 121st out of 180 countries in the Corruption Perceptions Index by the end of 2024, which is consistent with the country’s performance in 2023.

Last year, Uzbekistan scored 32 points out of a possible 100, one point lower than its score in 2023. Togo and Sri Lanka also received the same number of points.

Among Central Asian countries, Kazakhstan earned the highest score, coming in at 88th place. In contrast, Turkmenistan had the lowest ranking in the region, at 165th.

Denmark recorded the least corruption, retaining the top spot...

On February 11, the dollar exchange rate rose by 8.06 soums, reaching 12,979.99 soums at currency exchanges. The Central Bank of Uzbekistan established the dollar’s value similarly.

The dollar is purchased for 12,910 to 12,950 soums at banks’ exchange offices and sold for 12,975 to 13,035 soums.

Kursiv Uzbekistan also reports on S&P’s forecasts regarding the dollar exchange rate in Uzbekistan.

South Korean company New&New plans to establish a production and testing center for cosmetics in the Ferghana region, according to a report from the regional khokimiyat.

Khokim Khairullo Bozarov and company founder Lee Ho-Young discussed the potential launch of this enterprise in the region.

New&New currently collaborates with Uzbekistan’s Mehrigiyo, a domestic firm that produces products from medicinal plants and is located in Uchkupriki District, Fergana Region.

The company specialises in creating cosmetics made from plant-based components and offers over five thousand products.

Kursiv Uzbekistan also reports that the Italian company Gamma Meccanica will open a stone wool...

According to the company’s financial report, the Humo payment system reported a net profit of 168.2 bn soums at the end of 2024, reflecting a 47.1% year-over-year growth.

Humo’s revenue increased by 44% during this period, reaching 311.4 bn soums. The payment system’s assets grew significantly, rising by 65.4% to 434.8 bn soums, while capital climbed to 369 bn soums.

The cash in the company’s current account surged 2.5 times, increasing to 233.5 bn soums.

In January of this year, Paynet acquired the Humo payment system for $65 mln.

Kursiv Uzbekistan also reports that Humo plans to...

On February 11, the price of a five-gram gold bar for the first time exceeded 6.2 mln soums, according to data published by the regulator on their Telegram channel.

During the same day, the prices of ten-gram and twenty-gram bullion bars increased, reaching 12.4 mln soums and 24.9 mln soums, respectively. The cost of fifty-gram ingots rose to 62.3 mln soums, while one hundred-gram ingots reached 124.6 mln soums.

As a reminder, on the morning of February 11, the price of gold on the New York Stock Exchange surpassed $2,900, increasing by 1.09% throughout the day. Analysts predict...

Recent information from the Republican Stock Exchange (RSE) Toshkent reveals that Alkes Research and Kapital-Deposit were the leading brokers in Uzbekistan based on the number of transactions for January 2025.

During this month, clients of Alkes Research completed 35,800 transactions, while Kapital-Depozit recorded 30,900 transactions. This marks a 33.4% increase in the number of transactions for Alkes Research compared to December of the previous year, and Kapital-Deposit saw its transaction numbers increase nearly eightfold.

Regarding transaction volume, the top performers were Mulk-Sarmoya Brokerlik Depository and TAT-Reestr, which received its license in May last year. The monthly turnover for...

Taliban condemned the transfer of seven helicopters from Uzbekistan to the United States, which Afghan pilots had transported to Uzbekistan after the Taliban took power in 2021, according to a statement from the Afghan Ministry of Defence.

Officials from the ministry described the transfer of military equipment to the Americans as unacceptable. Taliban demanded the return of the helicopters and urged neighbouring countries to respect the rights of the Afghan people. The ministry believes that all military equipment removed from the country belongs to Afghanistan.

Over 40 military aircraft and helicopters from Afghanistan arrived in Uzbekistan in 2021 after...

According to Xinhua, citing the press office of Lianyungang City, 2,320 freight trains have travelled along the railway route linking China, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan, transporting 4,640 containers.

The parties exchanged goods worth approximately $100 mln. The media noted that this has contributed to the growth of economic cooperation between the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) countries.

The trade railway route connects Lianyungang with Tashkent. The first freight train on this route was launched in 2022. The data is current as of the end of 2024.

In 2024, Uzbekistan sold its priciest vehicle number plate for UZS 965.3 mln, as reported by the Uzbek Republican Commodity and Raw Materials Exchange.

From January to December last year, Uzbeks bought over 195,000 beautiful number plates at auctions, doubling interest compared to 2023. Sales volume increased by 43.6%, reaching UZS 569 bn.

Individuals made up 97% of buyers, while companies and organisations accounted for 3%. The lowest price for a number plate was UZS 1.7 mln.

Launched in 2017, UzRCSB’s platform sets the final price via electronic auctions. The most expensive number plate in the exchange’s...

Russia is reviewing all requests from Central Asian countries regarding migration policy, according to Mikhail Galuzin, Deputy Head of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The ministry aims to provide detailed explanations regarding the work of Russian law enforcement agencies. Galuzin emphasised that police officers and other law enforcement officials act without regard to the civil status or nationality of the foreigner.

According to the diplomat, the work of law enforcement is focused on ensuring the safety of both Russian citizens and the migrants themselves. Moscow assumes that other countries view its migration policy with “understanding.”

Recently, Russia...

The match between the national teams of Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers has been rescheduled to 21:15 Tashkent time (22:15 Bishkek time), as reported by the Football Association of Uzbekistan.

The game, scheduled for March 20, will be held later in the evening to allow fans to break their fast for iftar, as the match falls during the holy month of Ramadan. During this time, Muslims observe a strict fast, with food permitted only after sunset.

The previous encounter with the same opponent, in the second match of the third round of World Cup...

Alisher Kadyrov, chairman of the Milliy Tiklanish party, has criticised the public outreach efforts of the Ministry of Energy of Uzbekistan, as reported by the party’s press service.

According to the deputy, there is considerable public dissatisfaction with the country’s energy policy. Many people do not understand the changes happening in the sector and have voiced their criticism of the ministry and energy companies on social media.

Kadyrov urged the Ministry of Energy to improve its communication with the public.

“Who is telling the people that 75% of the electricity is currently generated from gas, about...

In January of this year, the Central Bank of Uzbekistan fined ten banks, according to the regulator’s report.

Over the past month, the regulator addressed 44 issues. These included changes to the charters of credit institutions and the registration of microfinance organisations.

The Central Bank also removed the company Start Kapital Invest from the State Register of Credit Unions. Following inspections, a warning was issued to one payment system operator.

Additionally, eight issues related to the financial condition of credit institutions were discussed, including the enforcement of orders and compliance with the economic regulations set by the regulator.

US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the war in Ukraine during a phone call. This was revealed by Trump in an interview with the New York Post.

According to Trump, President Putin is concerned about the loss of soldiers’ lives.

During the interview, Trump stated that he has a plan to end the fighting. Addressing his National Security Advisor, Michael Waltz, he said:

“Let’s start these meetings. They want to meet. People are dying every day.”

In his conversation with journalists, the US leader reminded them that the war began during President...

Elon Musk, the American billionaire, has confirmed that he will not be acquiring TikTok. He made this statement during his speech at the WELT Economic Summit, as reported by the platform’s press service.

Earlier, media reports had suggested that Musk was a likely candidate to purchase the social media giant’s assets in the US. Bloomberg later revealed that the Chinese authorities had discussed the possibility of selling TikTok to Musk.

On January 19, TikTok’s US operations were temporarily suspended. However, US President Donald Trump subsequently assured TikTok’s owners that they would be given more time to secure a...

Hamburg’s Land Court has ruled in favour of representatives of Alisher Usmanov, prohibiting the Tagesspiegel newspaper from spreading false claims about the billionaire. This was reported by EU Today.

The case relates to an article titled “Fan of Germany and Putin’s Friend: Who is Russian Oligarch Alisher Usmanov?” published in November 2024. After a protest from the billionaire’s lawyers, the article was removed, but journalists continued to circulate several statements from it.

For instance, the publication claimed that the billionaire acquired the largest assets of the Soviet economy for a fraction of their value.

According to Usmanov, he did not participate in...

Rovshan Omarov, a deputy of the Derbent City Assembly and, by extension, the owner of a greenhouse business, was arrested by law enforcement for organising illegal immigration. The investigation was reported by the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for the Republic of Dagestan.

Investigators believe that Omarov, along with an accomplice, housed four foreign workers (citizens of Uzbekistan and China) at his property last year.

The migrants worked in Omarov’s greenhouses in the village of Rukel without having the right to stay in the country or permission to work. Dagestani media report that they were not...

In 2024, Uzbekistan exported 17,900 tonnes of turnips worth $4.6 mln. Kazakhstan emerged as the primary buyer of the root vegetable, according to the State Statistics Committee of Uzbekistan.

Over the year, Kazakhstan imported nearly 9,400 tonnes of Uzbek turnips. The top three buyers also included Kyrgyzstan (almost 4,700 tonnes of turnips) and Russia (3,500 tonnes of turnips).

Additionally, Uzbekistan sold 340 tonnes of turnips to Belarus. Other countries accounted for less than 0.2% of total exports.

The first stage of construction of the Esim Canal in Karakalpakstan has been completed, as repoted by the press service of the Council of Ministers of the Autonomous Republic.

A decree from the President of Uzbekistan is carrying out this construction. Voris China has been allocated 19.2 bn soums to complete this initial canal construction stage.

Kursiv Uzbekistan also reports that the railroad has connected the cities of Urgench in the Khorezm region and Kungrad in Karakalpakstan.

Uzbekistani player Abdukodir Khusanov changed the course of the match against Leyton Orient on February 8 by equalising in the 56th minute, following an own goal that had put his team at a disadvantage.

In the 1/16 finals of the FA Cup, Manchester City defeated Leyton Orient 2-1 on their opponent’s home ground. Manchester City trailed in the first half due to an own goal scored by their goalkeeper, Stefan Ortega.

In the second half, Khusanov, who had entered the game after halftime, scored his first goal for the team by directing a pass from Rico Lewis into the Leyton...

As of February 1, the total value of Uzbekistan’s reserve assets reached $42.9 bn, representing an increase of $1.7 bn from the previous month, according to the country’s Central Bank.

The regulator noted that the value of gold in the national reserves rose by $3.02 bn, bringing the total to $35 bn. The volume of gold reserves increased from 382.57 tons (12.3 mln troy ounces) to 391.9 tons (12.6 mln troy ounces).

Conversely, the country’s foreign exchange reserves decreased by $1.2 bn, to $7.2 bn.

Kursiv Uzbekistan also reports that, according to Bloomberg, the price of gold may...

There has been a significant failure in the electronic tax services system, as reported on local social networks.

Users are experiencing difficulties scanning receipts in the Soliq application and accessing other services.

The Tax Committee of Uzbekistan has stated that specialists are working to resolve these technical issues.

“The system will be restored to normal operation soon,” the committee’s press service reported.

Additionally, Kursiv Uzbekistan notes that in 2024, residents of Uzbekistan received nearly one trillion soums in cashback.

A federal court in the United States has temporarily blocked President Donald Trump‘s plan to recall employees of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), as reported by The Hill.

As a result, Trump will be unable to recall 2,200 USAID employees currently stationed abroad and place them on administrative leave. The court also ordered the reinstating of approximately 500 agency employees who had previously been suspended.

American trade unions representing diplomatic workers and civil servants had earlier called for Trump’s decision regarding USAID to be cancelled.

In early February, businessman Elon Musk and the head of the...

UEFA is discussing the possibility of eliminating extra time in the Champions League playoffs and replacing it with a penalty shootout, as reported The Guardian. This consideration arises from concerns that top clubs are already playing too many matches, and adding an additional 30 minutes on the pitch contributes to player fatigue, especially given the busy schedule of Champions League games.

Implementing such rule changes during the current TV rights sales cycle until 2027 is unlikely. The topic is still in informal discussions, with no concrete solutions in place. If approved, this change could help alleviate the congested calendar...