AKIPRESS.COM - Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Askar Mamin met with the Senior Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security of Singapore Teo Chee Hean, who is visiting Kazakhstan, the press service of the PM reported.

The sides discussed issues of developing investment and trade and economic cooperation, including the prospects for cooperation between the two countries in the EAEU – Singapore format after ratification of the free trade agreement signed between the Eurasian Economic Union and Singapore on Oct. 1, 2019, in Yerevan.

Kazakhstan is Singapore’s largest trade and economic partner in Central Asia, with bilateral trade turnover exceeding $520 million by the end of 2018. As of June 2019, Foreign direct investment from Singapore to the Kazakhstani economy almost tripled – from $28.5 million to $80.7 million.

Mamin called on the Singapore side to actively expand its presence in the Astana International Financial Center, establish close ties between the business circles of the two countries and participate in investment projects to modernize the transport and housing infrastructure of Kazakhstan.

The PM emphasized that ensuring the growth of foreign direct investment and trade is one of the priority areas of the Government of Kazakhstan.

He invited representatives of Singapore to participate in the upcoming 12th Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization in June 2020 in Nur Sultan.