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Uzbekistan's Wednesday: plenary stage, two supertankers, and the Azteca
In a single day Uzbekistan ran its largest investment pitch, watched the first Iranian oil leave through Hormuz since the blockade, and sent eleven men to play the World Cup at the Estadio Azteca. Each is a separate story. Lined up, they describe a country that is having a moment.
A good week to be pitching Central Asia
TIIF in Tashkent, the IsDB in Baku, and the Iran deal ticking toward Geneva have converged in a single week. The timing is not accidental. Central Asia has a window, and Uzbekistan in particular is spending it hard.
Remittances remain Central Asia’s clearest stability gauge
The fastest read on Central Asian stability is the money migrants wire home from Russia. In Tajikistan it equals almost half of GDP, which makes the ruble the region’s quiet budget line.
Central Asia’s critical minerals race: the deals outpace the mines
Central Asia keeps signing minerals deals with the West; China keeps taking the minerals. The gap now is bankability, power and processing.
Mongolia is building a railway straight into China's steel industry, and it knows exactly what that means
83 million tonnes of coal exported to China in 2024. A new cross-border railway under construction since April 2025. $1.5 billion in additional annual revenue projected. The numbers are compelling. The dependency is real.
What the EBRD is bringing to Riga, and what Central Asia should watch
The Bank's 35th Annual Meeting opens Thursday. For the region, three things matter: the new Regional Economic Prospects, the Aktau port investment, and the signal on Trans-Caspian financing.
The level of the delegation is the message
Central Asia is in St. Petersburg this week, but not equally. What each country’s roster says about where the relationship with Russia actually stands
Mongolia vs Rio Tinto: the copper mine at the centre of the world
Oyu Tolgoi is producing record copper, heading for fourth place globally, and generating a political crisis. Ulaanbaatar wants a renegotiation. Rio Tinto cannot afford to walk away.