Uzbekistan expands presence in Afghan market with new retail complex

A new Uzelectronics home appliance center featuring products from Uzbek manufacturers has opened in the Afghan city of Mazar-i-Sharif, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry reported.

The complex was established with the participation of the Uzeltechsanoat association and the state-owned Trade Development Company. Covering 1,200 square meters, it showcases more than 500 types of electrical appliances from 25 brands, including televisions, refrigerators, heaters and kitchen equipment.

The center also offers lighting products, transformers, copper wire and other goods, with its assortment updated regularly. As part of the project, presentations of Afghan-made goods will also be organized in Uzbekistan.

Uzeltechsanoat and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry plan to open another multibrand retail center in Kabul.

According to official data, exports of Uzbek electrical products to Afghanistan exceeded $5 million from January to October – five times higher than the total for 2021. By the end of the year, Uzeltechsanoat expects to increase exports to $10 million.

Davron Vakhabov, head of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, cited as an example a heater supplier from Kokand. Within a month of starting deliveries, the company sold 25,000 units at $10–11 each, compared to a market price of $6–7 in Uzbekistan.

In addition, the foreign trading platform of the Uzbek Republican Commodity and Raw Materials Exchange (UzRCRME) has started operating in Afghanistan with the support of local Ghazanfar Bank. It will provide a secure mechanism for settlements between businesses in the two countries

Ghazanfar Bank will hold payments for Uzbek goods in escrow accounts and transfer the funds to exporters once the products arrive. This new procedure will ensure faster and more transparent business processes, the Chamber noted.