Business activity across Kazakhstan's service sector expanded at the start of the second quarter, according to the Freedom Holding Corp Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) produced by S&P Global.

Growth in activity has been recorded in each month since the turn of the year, though the latest uptick is the most marked in nine months. Anecdotal evidence primarily attributed the expansion to the growing amount of new business received in April, the commentary issued with the PMI findings said.

The headline Business Activity Index posted at 51.4 in April, up from 50.3 in March (any figure above 50.0 denotes an expansion).

The start of 2Q25 recorded a sixth consecutive monthly rise in new business, with the latest expansion the fastest in just over one-and-a-half years.

The commentary read: “This increase was attributed to improving underlying demand trends, successful marketing drives, new customer wins, and the introduction of new services.

“Increases in activity and new business across Kazakhstan's service sector were accompanied by rising price pressures, the latest survey data showed. Cost burdens rose sharply in April, with general price hikes being the most common driver of higher costs faced by Kazakh service providers. “The rate of input price inflation was stronger than that seen in the previous month, albeit still weaker than the long-run series average. In line with rising cost burdens, Kazakh service providers raised their charges at a stronger pace in April.”

Yerlan Abdikarimov, director of the financial analysis department at Freedom Finance Global, a 100% subsidiary of Freedom Holding Corp, said: "In April, the steady growth of business activity in the services sector of Kazakhstan, driven by a rapid increase in new orders, was accompanied by cost optimization and restructuring of operations at a number of companies.

“Consequently, the staff reductions that began in the previous month continued, and companies increasingly adopted strategies to transfer the burden of growing costs and market risks to their service prices.

“These trends point to signs of intensifying competition, under which companies are striving to balance increasing demand with cost control. Expectations for the next 12 months have been moderately adjusted following a surge in confidence in February and March. Notably, expectations remained historically strong, signalling sustained optimism within the sector."