NEWS

Plentiful opportunities, especially in the area of oil and gas, tourism, and agriculture, as well as policies developed to stimulate foreign investment and enhance the investment environment, are provided to investors by Azerbaijan, situated at the crossroads of Europe and Asia. Also, investments have been made by Azerbaijan in order to gain access to additional markets and strengthen its presence in the international economy, and capital has been committed by the country to sectors such as energy, real estate, infrastructure, and tourism.
An impressive rate of growth has been seen by Azerbaijan’s economy over the past decade. The World Bank announces a 1.4% increase of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2020, despite the global pandemic. The fortitude of Azerbaijan’s economy, which has endured multiple economic disturbances in the past, has been demonstrated by this. Azerbaijan’s Gross Domestic Product is estimated to reach approximately $54 billion, with an average annual increase of 1.9% over the past four years. A steady low rate of unemployment has been experienced by Azerbaijan over the past decade (5% on the average). This indicates the strength of the labor market and a prosperity of business environment.
Wise investments in fields that demonstrate promising growth and profitability have been cultivated by Azerbaijan. Due to successful efforts of the nation to broaden its economic base, its reliance on petroleum has been decreased. Notable success has been achieved by Azerbaijan in diversifying its economic base and diminishing its dependence on oil exports. A continuous rise of the non-oil exports of Azerbaijan has been noticed in the recent years; the Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Agency (AZPROMO) reports a 47.2% ($2713.40 million) and 12.3% ($3047.67 million) increase in 2021 and 2022 respectively. An increase of 36.6% in non-oil export earnings (approximately $651.42 million) compared to the same period the year before was recorded between January and February of 2023.
Azerbaijan’s natural resources, mainly its oil and gas reserves, attract multinational corporations from around the world. According to the State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan (SOCAR), the volume of 33.5 million tons was reached by Azerbaijan’s oil production in 2020. In 2021 it was 29.5 million tons and 32.8 million tons in 2022. Due to this, the nation can be placed among the major oil-producing countries in the region. 35 million barrels are projected to be reached by oil production in 2023. The Oil and Gas Journal announces that Azerbaijan has more than 2 trillion cubic meters of natural gas reserves, which gives a significant opportunity for energy companies worldwide.
A total of $4.5 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) was attracted by Azerbaijan in 2020: a 5.9% increase in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) compared to the past year was seen by Azerbaijan, which made it one of the most prominent FDI recipients within the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) area. The top three countries by FDI in Azerbaijan in 2020 were the United Kingdom, Turkey and the United States. As the Central Bank of Azerbaijan reports, $1.7 billion were contributed by the United Kingdom, $577 million were invested by Turkey and $475 million by the United States.
According to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Index, Azerbaijan has made substantial strides in reaching the objectives that were put in place by the United Nations across multiple domains. The SDG Index shows a decrease of the rate of global poverty from 49.6% in 2010 to 5.9% by 2022. A positive trend has also been demonstrated by Azerbaijan’s Global Hunger Index (GHI), decreasing from 14.5 in 2010 to 9.7 in 2019 and further to 7.5 in 2022. The benefits of its efforts to bolster health and well-being have been received by the citizens of the country, which was made evident by the increase in life expectancy from 68.6 years in 2010 to 73.3 years in 2022. Azerbaijan’s commitment to improving the standard of living for its people and promoting economic growth in a sustainable manner and its commitment to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals are interconnected.
A ranking of 25th place in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business report was achieved by Azerbaijan in 2019. A notable enhancement of 32 places from the previous year is demonstrated by this fact and a favorable business climate for foreign investors is highlighted. Azerbaijan was ranked 34th among 190 countries by the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Report in 2020, with a score of 76.7 for the ease of setting up a business.
All factors taken into consideration show that Azerbaijan is a highly attractive investment opportunity for a variety of industries, including energy, tourism, agriculture, and technology. A variety of incentives to simplify the foreign investment process has been put in place by the government in order to stimulate foreign investment. Attractive business environment, strategic location, and robust economic growth make Azerbaijan an attractive option for investors to expand their investment portfolios and explore new markets. Azerbaijan’s foreign investments influenced the nation’s economic growth significantly. Leveraged investments can be used by the country to expand its portfolio and reduce its reliance on oil and gas industries, as well as to access novel markets.

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A meeting between Azerbaijan’s Deputy Minister of Digital Development and Transport Rahman Hummatov and Director General at the Investment and Development Agency of Latvia Kaspars Rozkalns has been held.
Prospects for cooperation in the field of transport were discussed by the sides during the meeting. Cargo transportation between the Baltic and Caspian Seas was the main topic of the discussions. The issues of finding suitable routes and transporting goods over these routes were highlighted the meeting.
Views on establishment of cooperation in the field of digitalization of transport, as well as ICT, cyber security, “smart cities” were also exchanged by the pair.

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According to a letter sent to the prime minister of Serbia, Ana Brnabic, Serbia is requested by the European Commission to withdraw the implemented levies on the import of milk and dairy products.
Concern over the various trade restrictions implemented by Serbia in the past months, including the recently implemented levies, importing fees on milk and dairy products, is expressed in a letter sent by the EC to Brnabic.
The levies were not discussed with the EU before implementation, so the EC is calling Serbia to withdraw these restrictive measures.
As the EC confirmed, the obligations from the Stabilization and Association Agreement with the EU were not met by Serbia, because it didn’t consult the EU before implementing those measures and because a satisfactory justification for their implementation wasn’t provided.
Serbia is invited by the letter to withdraw the implemented measures, and unjustified new trade restrictions violating the conditions from the Regulation 1215/2009 and the amended Regulation 2020/2172 are pointed out.
The decision pertaining to the implementation of levies (import fees) of RSD 15 per liter of milk and RSD 30 per kilogram of seven types of cheese – Emmental, Cheddar, Edam, Tilsit, Kashkaval, Maasdam and Gouda was adopted by the Government of Serbia on February 17. The decision was made public by the Ministry of Agriculture of Serbia on February 20.
A positive reaction of agriculturists followed to the implementation of the import fees when it comes to milk, but the implementation of considerably higher levies on Kashkaval and hard cheeses (ten times as high as the current ones) is still being called for by them.
Milk producers’ protests continue. The Sabac Bridge was blocked for two hours on Friday, March 10. The protestors demanded the rise of the milk premiums to RSD 20, the increase of subsidies to RSD 40,000 per head of livestock, the implementation of levies on the import of prepared dairy products and the determination of guaranteed purchase price of milk.

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