Record improvement of Uzbekistan’s position on the benchmark “Freedom of Trade” on the index of economic freedom

The world has changed. The COVID-19 pandemic has made its own adjustments to global development. For example, in 2020, the world economy shrank by 4.3 percent, which is two and a half times more than during the global financial crisis of 2009.

The right trade policy of Uzbekistan, reforms in the area of optimization of tariff and non-tariff barriers (reduction of tariff rates, simplification of customs and regulatory restrictions), according to preliminary results, allowed to improve the position on the benchmark “Freedom of Trade” by 20.2 points. And this is in the context of an ongoing pandemic. So, the state was awarded 75.6 points in 2022 compared to 55.4 points in 2021.

Uzbekistan has overtaken such countries as the USA, Japan, China and Russia. At the moment, according to this indicator, the Republic ranks 67th compared to the 163rd place it occupied in 2021, becoming, at the same time, the absolute leader in Central Asia.

It should also be noted that according to preliminary results, the average score for the global indicator “Freedom of Trade” decreased from 70.9 to 69.5 points, while only 21% of countries were able to improve their tariff and non-tariff barriers in foreign trade.

For information: the Index of Economic Freedom is a rating that assesses the degree of economic freedom in the countries of the world. It is published by the American research center “Heritage Foundation” (The Heritage Foundation) together with the business publication The Wall Street Journal. The experts of this Foundation define economic freedom as “the absence of government interference or obstruction of the production, distribution and consumption of goods and services, except for the protection and support of freedom as such necessary for citizens.” Published since 1995.

 

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