BERLIN, January 21. /Dunyo IA/. The German economic publication “Ostwirtschaft.de” has published an analytical article on the current state of Uzbekistan’s entrepreneurial sector, reports Dunyo IA correspondent.

According to the publication, as of January 1, 2026, of the total of 474,899 active organizations, 407,850 were commercial enterprises. By far the largest share was made up of small and micro enterprises: 403,767 companies or around 85 percent of all active companies belonged to this category. This means that the corporate sector remains clearly characterised by small structures.

Statistical data indicate that in recent years there has been a noticeable decline in the total number of enterprises. In particular, the number of companies operating at the beginning of 2025 was 424,840, almost 20 percent below the level of 2022. The number was also noticeably lower compared to 2024 (485,024) and the record year 2023 with more than 592,000 companies.

The number of small companies shrank particularly sharply. At 358,116 establishments, it was 22.6 percent below the 2022 figure and around 14 percent below the previous year's level. Compared to the peak in 2023, the minus is even more than 30 percent.

Economic activity continues to be strongly oriented towards the capital. In Tashkent, around 108,700 companies were registered, which corresponds to almost 23 percent of all active companies. This is followed by the Tashkent region, Samarkand, Fergana and Kashkadarya. Together, these five regions account for more than half of all companies in the country, German source notes.

There is also a clear focus by sector. Retail dominates with a good 153,000 companies and a share of more than 32 percent. This is followed by industry as well as agriculture, forestry and fishing. Together, these three sectors account for more than half of all active companies.

The German publication also highlights a significant increase in the number of enterprises with foreign capital in Uzbekistan. At the beginning of the year, 18,164 such companies were counted - an increase of more than 22 percent within one year. Around three-quarters of these are wholly foreign-owned, a significant increase compared to five years ago.

In terms of investor geography, China remains the largest investor, followed by Russia and Türkiye.

The fact that three-quarters of foreign-capital companies are entirely owned by overseas investors underscores the attractiveness of Uzbekistan’s investment climate and the reliability of its legal protections.

According to German experts, the ongoing changes in Uzbekistan’s economy point to a market transformation process and reflect a strengthening of foreign investors’ confidence in the country’s future.