Owing to robust revenue inflows from commodity exports, official figures report that Uzbekistan has run a small consolidated fiscal surplus in recent years. The budget is reported to have ended 2010 in surplus equivalent to 0.3% of GDP. The government has also used a proportion of energy export revenue to boost the Fund for Reconstruction and Development (FRD), and has drawn on the FRD to finance important infrastructure projects.

However, budget data are opaque, and the government is gradually reducing subsidies to the population, which suggests that the fiscal position is less robust than reported. Utilities costs are set centrally, and are for the most part below cost-recovery levels. In practice, the subsidy level is even higher, as it is difficult for utilities providers to force delinquent consumers to pay. The government increased most utilities costs by around 9% from April 1st. However, when further increases introduced over the previous 12 months are taken into account, most households are now paying around 19% more year on year for their utilities.

Download the numbers in Excel