Tashkent, Uzbekistan – The volume of the total external debt of Uzbekistan as of 1 April 2020 made up US$25.1 billion. This was stated in the quarterly review of the balance of payments of the country of the Central Bank of Uzbekistan.
According to the regulator, the volume of total external debt since the beginning of 2020 has grown by 2.8% or US$692 million.
The Central Bank of Uzbekistan notes that public debt amounted to US$16.2 billion (+ US$385.3 million) and private sector debt – US$8.9 billion (+ US$307 million).
The increase in public sector debt during the first quarter of 2020 reached US$385 million. At the same time, against the backdrop of a global pandemic, the market value of sovereign bonds in Uzbekistan decreased as a result of lower stock quotes on stock markets.
Private sector debt increased by US$307 million, mainly due to increased borrowing by banks.
It should be noted that for the I quarter of 2020, the private sector attracted loans totaling US$566 million. The borrowing was mainly carried out by banks – US$451 million, textile enterprises – US$36 million and enterprises of other sectors of the economy – US$74 million.
At the same time, over the period under review, on the state external debt, the repayment of the main debt and interest was carried out in the amount of US$132 million and US$93 million, respectively.
Payments on private external debt amounted to US$258 million for the main debt and US$53 million for interest. At the same time, enterprises in the oil and gas and energy sectors, as well as in the banking sector, continue to make the largest volume of payments both in terms of principal and interest.
