Georgian Deputy Economy Minister: Georgia-China strategic partnership boosts trade, deepens economic cooperation

Tamar Ioseliani, Georgia’s Deputy Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development, on Wednesday said that the comprehensive strategic partnership between Georgia and China was significantly strengthening economic ties and contributing to strong growth in trade, exports, and investment.

In her interview with Imedi TV, Ioseliani discussed the economic impact of Georgia’s upgraded strategic partnership with China, highlighting recent trade growth indicators and emphasising the expanding importance of China as one of Georgia’s key economic partners.

She noted that since the launch of the strategic partnership framework in 2023, cooperation has intensified, contributing to the development of national production and overall economic activity.

The Deputy Minister further highlighted that trade turnover between Georgia and China has shown steady growth, increasing by 17% in 2024, 21% in 2025, and 45% in the first months of 2026.

“China holds third place among Georgia’s largest trading partners, and it is important that this direction accounts for an 11.5% share in this process. It is also noteworthy that in terms of export markets, China ranked second in 2024 and 2025. These are truly important indicators that allow us to say that economic relations will deepen even further in the future. We are, of course, actively working in this direction together with our Chinese partners and local businesses”, Ioseliani said.

She also highlighted that Georgia was the first country in the region to sign a free trade agreement with China, describing it as a key step that laid the foundation for the current expansion in economic relations.

Ioseliani noted that, as of January-April 2026, not only did trade turnover between Georgia and China increase by around 45%, but exports also tripled, showing a growth of approximately 194%.

“I believe these indicators give us both the possibility and the right to assume that 2026 will be an unprecedented year of growth in this direction, as will the following years. At the same time, exports excluding re-exports tripled, resulting in approximately 218% growth. This amounts to 77.8 million USD, with its share in total exports reaching about 97%. Of course, these figures confirm that agreements of this type between Georgia and China allow us to deepen trade and economic relations and, accordingly, bring the two countries much closer”, she concluded.