Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — Countries in Central Asia may face a slowdown in GDP growth due to newly imposed U.S. tariffs and rising trade tensions, said Thanos Arvanitis, Deputy Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), during an economic forum in Tashkent.

In early April, the United States introduced a 27% tariff on goods from Kazakhstan, while other countries in the region were subject to a base rate of 10%. Washington has since suspended these tariffs for three months.

Although exports to the U.S. account for less than 0.5% of Central Asia’s GDP, the IMF warns that such measures could still exert additional pressure on the region’s economies.

Moreover, higher tariffs and potential retaliatory actions from other nations could weaken the global economy. This would disrupt supply chains, reduce investment flows, and dampen demand—all factors that may contribute to slower GDP growth across Central Asia.

The IMF noted that while the direct impact of the tariffs remains limited for now, the combined effect of trade and financial pressures increases the risks and undermines the stability of the region’s economic outlook.