On April 16, Minister of Finance B.Javkhlan shared detailed information about the establishment of an interim free trade agreement with the member states of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). Speaking during a recent press briefing, the minister emphasized the country’s long-standing initiative to strengthen exports and economic cooperation through this agreement. While the government had been actively pushing the deal forward, the agreement’s finalization has been postponed, leading to both concern and cautious optimism among stakeholders.
“In terms of the Eurasian Agreement, we, not the Russians, have been pushing for it for the last 20 years, but we are now sitting back. Foreign trade has two streams, namely exports and imports. Our goal, which we started 20 years ago, was to export the hides and wool that were being sold in the herders’ towns at a high price,” Minister B.Javkhlan underlined.
He noted that despite recent domestic progress driven by national initiatives, the goal of exporting agricultural raw materials remains vital. “In recent years, as a result of the food revolution and the national revolution in platinum, we have developed domestic factories, but they are not the same. However, we have grown vegetables to meet 50 percent of our domestic reserves and have a supply of eggs to meet domestic needs.”
The minister made clear that the objective of increasing exports cannot be compromised. “The other big goal, which is to export agricultural raw materials, is that we cannot retreat from it, according to the Eurasian Agreement. We have agreed on each product individually, and now we are doing more than we have agreed. Amid global trade uncertainties, including those triggered by decisions from Western countries, especially the tariff policies introduced by U.S. President Donald Trump - Mongolia is opting to act decisively. At a time when the West, especially Trump’s tariff decisions, are having a very uncertain impact on foreign trade, the government has already made a decision on the principle of doing the agreement. If we can do it, we can do it more, and if we can, we can continue,” he added.
Minister B.Javkhlan also reported notable progress in Mongolia’s export sector, with a sharp increase in the past week. The export of key raw materials has increased in the past week. It has reached 278 million USD since the beginning of the year, which is a high for this year, and more than 40 million USD more than the previous week, according to the government.
He highlighted that this growth was driven by exports from the Nariin Sukhait group of deposits and other private mines. “Almost two million tons of coal were traded. This means more than 40 million USD in monetary terms and contributed to the increase in foreign exchange reserves. Since the beginning of the year, Mongolia’s foreign exchange reserves have reached more than 5.2 billion USD.”
To support this momentum, the minister issued directives to key port authorities and logistics operators. First, he directed the ports of Gashuunsukhait, Shiveekhuren, Khangi, Bulgan and Bichigt to show positive results in foreign exchange reserves and to properly prioritize urgently needed exports. Moreover, he called on coal and transportation companies to boost efficiency. He directed coal and transport companies to increase competitiveness and reduce costs by loading export products and reducing the costs incurred until the railway is built.
