According to data from the Central Bank of Uzbekistan, the volume of money transfers received in the country from abroad increased by 13% year-on-year, reaching $9.3 billion for the period from January to June 2026. This growth amounted to $1.1 billion.
The regulator attributes the increase to the growing demand for labor and relatively high wage levels in traditional labor migration destinations, as well as the general strengthening of these countries' national currencies amid moderate exchange rate fluctuations since the beginning of the year.
According to Rosstat, the average nominal wage in Russia in the first quarter of 2026 was 106,900 Russian rubles, which is 15.1% higher in nominal terms and 8.7% higher in real terms compared to the same period last year. The Russian ruble, calculated based on official Bank of Russia exchange rates, strengthened by an average of 13.5% against the US dollar in the first half of 2026 compared to the same period in 2025.
In the United States, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average hourly wage for private sector workers not engaged in agriculture increased by 13 cents, or 0.3%, in June, reaching $37.6, and grew by 3.5% year-on-year.
The Central Bank noted the continued diversification of labor migration destinations. The Migration Agency reported that Uzbekistan has signed 48 agreements with 23 countries on organized labor migration. Of these, 18 intergovernmental and interdepartmental agreements were signed with 14 countries in 2025–2026. Furthermore, cooperation has been established with more than 325 major employers and recruitment companies from 36 countries.
Potential partners include Germany, the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Sweden, France, Bulgaria, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Serbia, the United States, and Japan. New destinations include the United States, Italy, Sweden, France, and Slovenia.
Vacancies cover the sectors of trade and services, healthcare and social services, transport and logistics, agriculture, industry, construction, welding and metalworking, woodworking, as well as oil and gas and mining sectors. In the current year, 124,500 citizens of Uzbekistan were employed in high-paying positions abroad.
The largest increase in remittances was recorded from the United Kingdom, which rose by 62%; from the European Union—by 27%, including Ireland, where the growth was 86%, Lithuania—by 18%, and the Netherlands—by 7%; as well as from the United States—by 19%.
In absolute terms, remittances from Kazakhstan increased from $366 million to $469 million; from the United States—from $313 million to $372 million; from South Korea—from $282 million to $314 million; from Turkey—from $266 million to $303 million; from the United Kingdom—from $89 million to $144 million; and from the European Union—from $251 million to $319 million.
Of the total amount of funds received by individuals, $4.3 billion, or 46.7%, were transferred through traditional international money transfer systems, representing an increase of 0.3%. Another $4.8 billion, or 51.7%, was transferred directly to bank cards via P2P systems, which grew by 32%. Bank transfers via SWIFT amounted to $142 million, or 1.6%, a decrease of 43%.
The Central Bank also mentioned global trends. Over the past decade, international remittances to low- and middle-income countries have exceeded $5.5 trillion. Since 2015, remittances, excluding China, have remained one of the largest sources of external financing for developing countries, surpassing foreign direct investment since 2022.
In 2025, India remained the largest recipient of remittances with an amount of $151 billion, followed by Mexico, the Philippines, Egypt, Pakistan, and Bangladesh.
Simultaneously, according to the Central Bank, the amounts sent by Uzbek citizens abroad increased by 8%, or $100 million, for the period from January to June 2026, reaching $1.3 billion.
The tourist flow to Uzbekistan has significantly increased since the beginning of the year: during the period from January to July, the country welcomed over 7.749 million foreign citizens. This figure exceeds the numbers for the same period in 2025 by 1.4 million people, which represents a growth of 22.6%.
According to information from the National Committee on Statistics, the majority of visitors arrived from neighboring countries. Kyrgyzstan topped the list of donor countries, gathering 2.18 million guests over seven months. Kazakhstan took second place with 1.86 million tourists, and Tajikistan was third, registering 1.73 million visits.
Russia also became one of the key destinations for foreign tourists, with 710.8 thousand Russians arriving in the country. Among other visiting countries, there were arrivals of 281.2 thousand tourists from Afghanistan, 269.7 thousand from China, 192.8 thousand from Turkmenistan, and 111.9 thousand from Turkey. The top ten leaders are rounded out by India with 32.5 thousand and the Republic of Korea with 26.5 thousand tourists.
Furthermore, Uzbekistan decided to update the concept of national souvenirs to make them more modern, convenient, and attractive to visitors. To achieve this goal, the Uzbek Gift Contest started, which is designed to encourage designers and artisans to create new products that combine traditional crafts with current ideas.
According to data from the National Statistical Committee, in the first half of 2026, Uzbekistan imported significantly more natural gas than it exported, with import volumes growing while exports decreased.
Natural gas imported from Russia and Turkmenistan increased by 41.4% compared to the previous year, reaching $971.7 million for the period from January to June. The total amount included $86.3 million in liquefied gas imports, which grew threefold.
During the first half of the year, gas imports fluctuated. After reaching $167.6 million in January, imports fell to $34.6 million in February, and then rose to $158.3 million in March. In April, imports amounted to $147.8 million, rising to $216.4 million in May, and reaching their highest annual value of $247 million in June.
Exports of natural gas from Uzbekistan decreased by 34.4% over this six-month period, totaling $232.9 million. Exports were completely suspended in January and resumed in February at a level of $7.1 million.
In March, exports increased more than fivefold compared to February, reaching $29.4 million. Subsequently, they rose to $92.7 million in April, before falling to $73.5 million in May and $30 million in June.
Data from the National Statistical Committee differs from information published by the General Customs Administration of China. According to Chinese customs statistics, Uzbekistan exported natural gas worth $218.6 million during the period from January to June 2026, which is $14.2 million less than indicated by the Uzbek statistical agency. Chinese data also recorded a decrease in natural gas imports into Uzbekistan.
According to Chinese figures, exports in June amounted to $79.03 million, which is 23.7% less than in the same month last year. Compared to January-June 2025, when exports totaled $368.5 million, natural gas exports decreased by more than 40%.
