Kazakhstan, Germany strike multi-billion dollar business deals

Kazakhstan and Germany signed 34 agreements worth 2 billion euros during last weekend’s Kazakh-German business forum in Astana.

Attending the forum in the Kazakh capital, German Chancellor Angela Merkel was quoted in an official press release from Berlin as saying that Kazakhstan was the economic center of Central Asia and by far the most important trade partner for Germany in the region. "Germany can contribute a lot to Kazakhstan's industrial modernization. Germany supports Kazakhstan's intention to diversify the economy and develop infrastructure as well as promote small and medium businesses," Merkel said, according to Kazakh website Kazinform.

Siemens, Germany’s biggest engineering company, also on Sunday signed a memorandum of collaboration with Kazakhstan’s state-run railway company worth as much as 400 million euros, as part of the chancellor’s visit to the central Asian country.

The Munich-based company also agreed to cooperate with Kazakhstan on oil and gas ventures, as well as health care, Bloomberg reported.