Russia, Kyrgyzstan increasing settlements in national currencies - minister

YEKATERINBURG. June 9 (Interfax) - The share of settlements in national currencies between Russia and Kyrgyzstan is growing, Russian Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov said.

"Interest is growing in supporting national currencies and increasing their share in settlements between our countries. The market is increasingly choosing reliable contracts. In 2021, the share of the Russian ruble in the structure of settlements in trade with Kyrgyzstan amounted to more than 48%," Reshetnikov said at the ninth Russia-Kyrgyzstan Interregional Conference in Yekaterinburg on Thursday.

He also said companies from Kyrgyzstan can fill vacated niches on the Russian market and develop new markets.

"For example, three agreements will be signed at the conference today for the development of regional cooperation, including on postal and logistics services, agriculture and fisheries," the minister said.

"The agreement between postal services opens up opportunities for the development of e-commerce, where delivery of goods and logistics are the priority, as well as to increase the accessibility of money transfers. This is particularly important given that Kyrgyzstan accounts for half of all Eurasian Economic Union citizens working in Russia and the main flow of money transfers among the five countries," Reshetnikov said.

Several prospective projects in the agribusiness sector, information technology, railway engineering and hydropower are also in the works, he said.