Uzbekistan: ruble strengthens its position in foreign trade

According to the results of 2024, the Russian ruble significantly strengthened its position in the calculations of Uzbekistan's foreign trade. According to the Central Bank, its share in the country's imports reached 15%, while its share in exports was 18%. This was the result of structural changes in the republic's currency operations and reflects the trend of diversification of settlements in international trade.

Just five years ago, the ruble occupied an insignificant place in foreign economic calculations. In 2019, its share in Uzbekistan's imports was 4.2%, and in exports-only 0.8%. By 2023, these figures have increased to 7.6% and 5.3%, respectively. Over the same period, the share of the dollar and euro in settlements decreased from 99.1% to 93.2%, indicating a gradual redistribution of foreign exchange flows.

In 2024, import payments worth $ 29 billion — 70% of the total volume-were made in dollars. The ruble accounted for 15% or $ 6 billion, the euro for 11% ($4.4 billion), and 4% was settled in other currencies. The situation in the export structure looks similar: 75% of revenues, or $ 12.7 billion, were recorded in dollars, 18% (2.9 billion) in rubles, 5% (900 million) in euros, and the remaining 2% came from other currencies.

The growth of the ruble's share is largely due to the policy of switching to payments in national currencies. The share of such calculations already exceeds 60% and continues to increase. This process is taking place in parallel with the expansion of mutual trade between Uzbekistan and Russia.

According to national statistics, in 2024, the trade turnover of the two countries reached $ 11.63 billion, which is 14.5% higher than in 2023. Exports from Uzbekistan to Russia increased by 5.4% to $ 3.68 billion, accounting for 13.7% of total exports. Imports from Russia grew by 19.3% and reached $ 7.95 billion, which corresponds to 20.4% of total imports. For the first time, the volume of mutual trade between the two countries exceeded $ 11 billion, strengthening Russia in the second place among the largest trading partners of Uzbekistan after China.

The increase in settlements in rubles reflects not only economic pragmatism, but also a strategy to reduce dependence on the world's dominant currencies. For Uzbekistan, this is a step towards a more stable and flexible model of foreign economic relations, especially in the context of a changing global financial architecture.