There are substantial oil and gas deposits, many of these have only recently been located and the Kazakh government has signed joint production deals with American and European consortia. New pipeline projects agreed with the Russian Federation and Oman aim to upgrade distribution capabilities. Stone such as marble and granite are also produced in large quantities. The country's industries are predominantly concerned with processing its raw materials. Domestic production also fulfils most of Kazakhstan's energy needs, although a small proportion has to be imported.
Agriculture still accounts for half of economic output.
Livestock rearing is also important in this very arid region. However, one of the consequences of extensive cultivation has been heavy demand on water supplies, most particularly the rivers of Kazakhstan and its neighbour Uzbekistan, which have contributed to one of the greatest ecological disasters of recent times - the shrinking of the Aral Sea. Domestic policy developments have seen the implementation of a privatisation programme which has transferred more than half the country's commercial enterprises to the private sector. Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the Kazakhs have sought some economic independence from the Russian Federation but still find that they are severely affected by developments in their large neighbour. In 1993 the Kazakh exchequer introduced a new currency, the tenge, to replace the rouble.