Turkmenistan

Having an area of 491,2 thousand square kilometers and population of 4.96 million people, Turkmenistan borders in the north with Kazakhstan, in the north and in the east with Uzbekistan, in the south with Iran and Afghanistan. In the west Turkmenistan is washed by the Caspian sea. Flat or hilly sand deserts with sand dunes occupy 80 % of the country’s territory. In the late Middle Ages ancient carpeting art was highly developed with Turkmen tribes.The people kept ethnic carpet patterns of ancient Turkmen handicraftsmen (the 18 th - beginning of 20th centuries).

According to scientific research, about 1/3 world's reserves of natural gas and considerable deposits of oil locate in subsoil of Turkmenistan, including bordering Caspian shelf. There are considerable resources of potassium salts in Gaurdak region. Besides, Kara-Bogaz-Gol gulf is known by the largest in the world deposit of sea type natural salts, which resources are extremely large. In this district the country also extracts mirabilite and other valuable chemical compounds. The scientists prospect a district for silver, gold, lead, copper and zinc and found their deposits.

Source: http://www.world-asia.info/

Turkmenistan/General Information
  • Territory: 488,100 km2 bordering Afghanistan, Iran, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Caspian Sea
  • Population: 5,11 million people from which 85% are Turkmen , 5% are Uzbek, 4% are Russian
  • Capital: (Turkmen: Aşgabat, also Ashkhabad in transliteration from Russian or formerly Poltoratsk between 1919-1927); population of 695,300 people
  • Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, sulfur, salt
  • Agriculture: cotton, grain; livestock
  • Industry: natural gas, oil, petroleum products, textiles, food processing
  • Trends Half of the country's irrigated land is planted with cotton, making the country the world's tenth-largest producer of it. It possesses the world's fifth-largest reserves of natural gas and substantial oil resources
  • Main trade partners: Украина, Италия, Иран, РФ, Турция, США , Германия

Source: Wikipedia, The 2008 Fact Book

Turkmenistan| Macroeconomic Indicator
  2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
GDP, USD bn 14.2 17.2 21.3 26.2 n/a
GDP per capita, USD 2 870.8 3 418.5 4 191.5 5 052.2 4 180.5
Real GDP growth, % 14.7 9.0 9.0 10.0 10.0
Consumer prices index, % 105.9 110.7 108.2 106.5 109
Exports , USD bn 4.2 5.3 7.5 9.5 13.2
Imports, USD bn 4.1 3.9 3.6 4.9 6.8
Trade turnover, USD bn 8.3 9.2 11.1 14.4 20.0
Gross Official Reserves, USD bn - - - - -
Capital Investments _ 119,2 _ - -

Source: National Bank of Turkmenistan, IMF data, Regional Economic Outlook Middle East and Central Asia, Oct 2008, ADB ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK & TURKMENI