Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies calculated this year’s total volume of foreign investment in the country’s economy and it amounted to nearly US$9 billion. The Institute’s Chief Researcher, Vyacheslav Dodonov said that, overall, the investment climate in the country is quite favorable - foreign investors can count on preferences, tax incentives and legal protection. Analysts pointed out that, in terms of industries, foreign businesspeople are still interested in the extractive industries. However, Kazakhstan has competitive advantage in other areas as well, including non-resource-based sector. These include IT industry, pharmaceuticals, transport and logistics, and petrochemical industry. To date, the country is leading in many respects. For example, Kazakhstan is in the first place not only within the Commonwealth of Independent States, but in the entire world, in terms of the inflow of foreign investments per capita. The main investments come from such countries as the Netherlands, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, China and Russia.
