Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — Experts from the Institute for Macroeconomic and Regional Studies under the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Uzbekistan have conducted an analysis of the technological complexity of the country’s export structure for the period from 2017 to 2024, using UNCTAD's (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development) methodology.

According to this methodology, exported goods are classified into six categories based on their technological complexity and degree of processing: low-tech products (fabrics, ready-made garments, plastic items, furniture, leather goods, and wood products); medium-tech products (chemicals, polymers, fertilizers, engines, machinery, household appliances, auto parts, and agricultural equipment); high-tech products (electronics, electrical equipment, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, aerospace products, and precision instruments); resource-based manufactures (vegetable oils, tobacco products, juices, wood products, ores, petroleum products, chemical raw materials, and metals); primary commodities (cotton fiber, crude oil, natural gas, unprocessed ores, fruits and vegetables, gold, and other minerals); and unclassified items (special-purpose goods, unrefined gold, services, electricity, and military equipment).

Key findings of the analysis:

The share of primary commodities in Uzbekistan’s exports has halved over the analyzed period, declining from 36.3% in 2017 to 17.3% in 2024. Within this category, the largest shares were occupied by copper (30.96%), vegetables (18.6%), fruits and nuts (15.8%), natural gas (13.16%), and precious metals such as silver and platinum (5.7%).

Meanwhile, the share of resource-based manufactured goods doubled from 3.9% in 2017 to 8.4% in 2024. Leading products in this segment included oil and bituminous minerals (31.0%), wheat and meslin flour (19.2%), processed tobacco products (4.3%), construction materials (3.7%), and petroleum residues (3.5%).

Exports of low-tech products increased from 14.2% to 17.1%, with a noticeable rise in the internal complexity of this category. Major items included textile yarns (37.1%), ready-made garments from textile materials (13.1%), knitted fabrics and textiles (8.1%), finished textile goods (6.3%), and cotton fabrics (4.4%).

The share of medium-tech products remained stable at around 8%, but the internal composition became more sophisticated. This category was dominated by fertilizers (19.1%), auto parts (18.6%), polyethylene (12.3%), internal combustion engines (8.8%), and household appliances (6.7%).

High-tech exports tripled over the period, growing from 0.5% in 2017 to 1.5% in 2024. The key items included televisions and television equipment (14.6%), rotating electric machines (14.2%), electrical devices and apparatus (10.8%), and machinery and components for electricity generation (9.7%).

In conclusion, the analysis of Uzbekistan’s export structure from 2017 to 2024 reveals a trend toward greater technological sophistication, a rapid shift from raw material exports to value-added goods, deeper processing in low- and medium-tech sectors, and a steady increase in high-tech product exports.

These positive shifts in export composition reflect the country’s growing industrial capacity and its rising competitiveness in international markets.