In the second quarter of 2026, workers in Kazakhstan's oil and tobacco industries experienced the most significant salary declines among all industrial sectors. Over three months, oil workers' incomes fell by 14.6%, while those in the tobacco industry dropped by 21.3%, reports infohub.kz.
According to the Bureau of National Statistics, the steepest drop in average salaries was recorded in the production of tobacco products, at 21.3%. Despite the decrease, wages in this sector remain the highest among all industrial sectors, reaching 1.57 million tenge.
The second-largest decline was in crude oil and natural gas extraction, with a quarterly drop of 14.6%. However, oil workers' average salary remains high at 1.56 million tenge.
Significant income reductions were also noted in the production of precious and noble metals, down 12.9% to 788,000 tenge, and in automobile manufacturing, down 12.3% to 564,700 tenge.
Meanwhile, the leader in wage growth was textile production, which may be attributed to a low initial base. Textile workers' earnings rose by 34.8% to 296,000 tenge. Notable increases were also seen in the production of computers and electronic equipment, up 20.4% to 590,000 tenge, and in leather goods production, where wages grew by 19.8% to 247,000 tenge.
Earlier it was reported that in the second quarter of 2026, wages for air freight transport workers rose by more than 50% to 785,000 tenge. On an annual basis, the highest growth was seen in the production of films, videos, and television programs.