Uzbekistan eyes deeper SCO integration beyond trade

Mettis Global reported that Uzbekistan is pushing to widen its economic role within the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation ahead of the bloc's 25th anniversary in 2026. A study by Ziyoda Rizaeva of the Center for Economic Research and Reforms shows trade with fellow members rose 3.1 times in eight years to $40.6bn. Exports grew from $5.8bn to $10.65bn, and imports rose almost fourfold, from $7.1bn to roughly $30bn, making the bloc about half of Uzbekistan's foreign trade by 2025.

Kazakhstan, Russia and China are Uzbekistan's main partners in the group, and trade with China alone came to $17.2bn. Foreign investment and loans into fixed capital reached $33.5bn in 2025, with SCO members contributing $17.5bn, led by China at $13bn and then Russia at $2.6bn. Freight between Uzbekistan and SCO countries grew 40% across five years, reaching 33.5mn tonnes in 2025, and the transport ministry expects the volume could rise to 47mn tonnes by 2030.

Plans have been floated for an SCO network of innovation and technology hubs, plus an SCO Energy Consortium, focused on artificial intelligence, robotics and alternative energy. A proposed SCO Development Bank, intended to fund infrastructure and industrial projects, has yet to have its operating mechanisms fully developed. Construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway began in December 2024, and the route is projected to reduce transit distances by nearly 900 kilometres. A further rail line linking Uzbekistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan is undergoing a feasibility study.