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STUDY: AUSTRIA GIVES PILLS, KAZAKHSTAN OIL
by Jil
Die Presse
Sept 27 2012
Austria
Vienna - The region around the Caspian Sea has much to offer: young
nations on the way up, democratic progress, and economic growth of
about 5 per cent annually. The approximately 81 million people in
Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan,
Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan (affectionately called the "Stans"),
however, suffer under corruption, authoritarian regimes, and the fact
that the interests of China, Russia, Europe, and the United States
clash on the Caspian Sea.
The Austrian Government would nevertheless like to double the trading
volume with the region by 2015. This goal was issued by Minister for
Economics Reinhold Mitterlehner (OeVP) [Austrian People's Party] at a
conference with about 100 Austrian entrepreneurs and representatives
from Central Asia and the South Caucasus on Wednesday [ 26 September]
in Vienna. The region has a "considerable potential for the future,"
but one cannot yet speak of a flourishing market, Mitterlehner says.
The legal framework and access to financing could at least be improved,
added Wilhelm Molterer, former vice chancellor from the OeVP and
now vice president of the European Investment Bank (EIB). Austria
and the region around the "Stans" had a trading volume in 2011 of
about 2 billion euros. "In globalization, anything less than 2,000
km away is naturally a local market," says WIFO [Austrian Institute
of Economic Research] chief Karl Aiginger.
Russia Is Only Number Two
Almost 1.5 billion of the trading volume flowed from Austria to the
east, mostly in exchange for raw materials and above all for oil.
Kazakhstan is not just a group opponent of Austria in the qualification
for the 2014 Soccer World Cup but also the most important supplier
of oil. In 2011, Austria imported oil valued at 4.4 billion euros
altogether. Oil for almost 1.4 billion came from Kazakhstan. Nigeria
is in second place and delivers about half as much oil as Kazakhstan.
These statistics also put the rest of the trade with Armenia,
Azerbaijan, and Georgia in the shade. That is the result of a WIFO
study on behalf of the Ministry for Economics. Austria imports
goods valued at just a little more than 100 million euros from these
countries.
Kazakhstan also plays the main role in exports: in 2011, goods valued
at almost 200 million euros were exported from Austria to Kazakhstan.
The structure of the exports, however, is exemplary for all of the
countries of the region except Armenia. "The exports are concentrated
very much on high-value industrial goods," WIFO writes. They, in
turn, are divided into "machinery and vehicles" as well as "chemical
products." "Machinery and vehicles" include primarily high-value
technical products such as aircraft and trucks. "Chemical products"
stand mainly for medicines. The popularity of domestic pharmaceuticals
in Central Asia and in the South Caucasus also surprised WIFO. Thus,
almost 50 per cent of the exports to Kazakhstan are for medicines.
WIFO presumes that above all the Linz firm Nycomed, very active in
the region, could be behind that.
Armenian Gold Mystery
Armenia is a special case. Last year gold with a total value of 20.7
billion euros was obviously exported from Austria. Only no one knows
by whom or where to. The number is much too large for the "normal"
demand for domestic coins such as those of the Philharmonic Orchestra,
but neither the Austrian Mint nor WIFO nor the Chamber of Commerce can
explain the high export volume. One possibility is that the Armenian
Central Bank could have secretly increased its reserves and drawn
gold from Austrian banks.
Political stability remains a very big question mark in the region.
The former Soviet republics had shifted in the past years to a kind of
"authoritarian modernization," according to WIFO. Moreover, conflicts
of interests of the big powers were continually destabilizing the
region.
[Translated from German]
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
by Jil
Die Presse
Sept 27 2012
Austria
Vienna - The region around the Caspian Sea has much to offer: young
nations on the way up, democratic progress, and economic growth of
about 5 per cent annually. The approximately 81 million people in
Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan,
Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan (affectionately called the "Stans"),
however, suffer under corruption, authoritarian regimes, and the fact
that the interests of China, Russia, Europe, and the United States
clash on the Caspian Sea.
The Austrian Government would nevertheless like to double the trading
volume with the region by 2015. This goal was issued by Minister for
Economics Reinhold Mitterlehner (OeVP) [Austrian People's Party] at a
conference with about 100 Austrian entrepreneurs and representatives
from Central Asia and the South Caucasus on Wednesday [ 26 September]
in Vienna. The region has a "considerable potential for the future,"
but one cannot yet speak of a flourishing market, Mitterlehner says.
The legal framework and access to financing could at least be improved,
added Wilhelm Molterer, former vice chancellor from the OeVP and
now vice president of the European Investment Bank (EIB). Austria
and the region around the "Stans" had a trading volume in 2011 of
about 2 billion euros. "In globalization, anything less than 2,000
km away is naturally a local market," says WIFO [Austrian Institute
of Economic Research] chief Karl Aiginger.
Russia Is Only Number Two
Almost 1.5 billion of the trading volume flowed from Austria to the
east, mostly in exchange for raw materials and above all for oil.
Kazakhstan is not just a group opponent of Austria in the qualification
for the 2014 Soccer World Cup but also the most important supplier
of oil. In 2011, Austria imported oil valued at 4.4 billion euros
altogether. Oil for almost 1.4 billion came from Kazakhstan. Nigeria
is in second place and delivers about half as much oil as Kazakhstan.
These statistics also put the rest of the trade with Armenia,
Azerbaijan, and Georgia in the shade. That is the result of a WIFO
study on behalf of the Ministry for Economics. Austria imports
goods valued at just a little more than 100 million euros from these
countries.
Kazakhstan also plays the main role in exports: in 2011, goods valued
at almost 200 million euros were exported from Austria to Kazakhstan.
The structure of the exports, however, is exemplary for all of the
countries of the region except Armenia. "The exports are concentrated
very much on high-value industrial goods," WIFO writes. They, in
turn, are divided into "machinery and vehicles" as well as "chemical
products." "Machinery and vehicles" include primarily high-value
technical products such as aircraft and trucks. "Chemical products"
stand mainly for medicines. The popularity of domestic pharmaceuticals
in Central Asia and in the South Caucasus also surprised WIFO. Thus,
almost 50 per cent of the exports to Kazakhstan are for medicines.
WIFO presumes that above all the Linz firm Nycomed, very active in
the region, could be behind that.
Armenian Gold Mystery
Armenia is a special case. Last year gold with a total value of 20.7
billion euros was obviously exported from Austria. Only no one knows
by whom or where to. The number is much too large for the "normal"
demand for domestic coins such as those of the Philharmonic Orchestra,
but neither the Austrian Mint nor WIFO nor the Chamber of Commerce can
explain the high export volume. One possibility is that the Armenian
Central Bank could have secretly increased its reserves and drawn
gold from Austrian banks.
Political stability remains a very big question mark in the region.
The former Soviet republics had shifted in the past years to a kind of
"authoritarian modernization," according to WIFO. Moreover, conflicts
of interests of the big powers were continually destabilizing the
region.
[Translated from German]
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress