Opinion: Armenian economy to suffer minimum losses at end of year

Opinion: Armenian economy to suffer minimum losses at end of year

YEREVAN, September 11. /ARKA/. Armenia will complete the year with
minimum losses, Chairman of Armenia’s Union of Manufacturers and
Businessmen Arsen Ghazaryan told journalists Friday.

An 18.5% economic decline was recorded in Armenia in January-July; the
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) amounted to 1,417.1 billion drams
($3,789.6 million).

The world economy, with Armenian economy among others, is going through
serious trial now, Ghazaryan said. Yet, Armenia will start the year
2010 with stable and normal indicators, he added.

`Positive and encouraging activities, including those on import and
export, prove it. They cannot be compared with indicators of
March-April,’ Ghazaryan said.

According to the country’s Ministry of Finance, economic decline is to
range 10-15% by the end of the year.

As per projections by the World Bank, 12-14% economic recession is
expected in Armenia by the end of 2009. According to the IMF, the
recession is to be within 10-15%. N.V. `0–