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ARMENIA KEEPS UP DOUBLE-DIGIT GROWTH
By Emil Danielyan
Radio Liberty, Czech Rep.
Jan 21 2008
Armenia's economy grew at a double-digit rate in 2007 for the sixth
consecutive year on the back of its booming construction and services
sectors, according to government data made public on Monday.
Macroeconomic figures released by the National Statistical Service
(NSS) show Gross Domestic Product increasing by 13.8 percent to 3.14
trillion drams ($10.2 billion). The resulting inflationary pressures
on the economy pushed up consumer prices by an average of 6.6 percent,
well above a 4 percent target set by the government and the Central
Bank.
As was the case in the previous few years, robust growth was primarily
driven by burgeoning construction and services. The two sectors
expanded by approximately 20 percent and together accounted for over
38 percent of GDP.
Industry, which generated another 23 percent of GDP, remained the most
sluggish sector of the Armenian economy. Its aggregate output was up
by only 2.6 percent not least because of a further sharp decline in
the country's diamond-cutting industry, the official statistics show.
The NSS also reported more than 20 percent gains in household incomes
and the average wage which now stands at about 77,000 drams ($250)
per month. This will be held up by the government as a further
indication of rising living standards and declining poverty. The
government says the proportion of Armenian living below the poverty
line has fallen from about 50 percent to below 27 percent since the
start of double-digit growth in 2002.
Opposition politicians and other government critics question the
credibility of these figures, saying that the official poverty line is
set too low and does not take into account the increased cost of life
in Armenia. They also say economic growth is slower than is claimed
by the authorities.
The past year also saw Armenia's trade deficit reach a new high of
just over $2 billion as a result of an almost 50 percent jump in
imports. Armenian exports rose at a far more modest rate of 23.7
percent to $1.22 billion. Large-scale remittances from Armenians
working abroad remain the main source of financing the huge imbalance.
By Emil Danielyan
Radio Liberty, Czech Rep.
Jan 21 2008
Armenia's economy grew at a double-digit rate in 2007 for the sixth
consecutive year on the back of its booming construction and services
sectors, according to government data made public on Monday.
Macroeconomic figures released by the National Statistical Service
(NSS) show Gross Domestic Product increasing by 13.8 percent to 3.14
trillion drams ($10.2 billion). The resulting inflationary pressures
on the economy pushed up consumer prices by an average of 6.6 percent,
well above a 4 percent target set by the government and the Central
Bank.
As was the case in the previous few years, robust growth was primarily
driven by burgeoning construction and services. The two sectors
expanded by approximately 20 percent and together accounted for over
38 percent of GDP.
Industry, which generated another 23 percent of GDP, remained the most
sluggish sector of the Armenian economy. Its aggregate output was up
by only 2.6 percent not least because of a further sharp decline in
the country's diamond-cutting industry, the official statistics show.
The NSS also reported more than 20 percent gains in household incomes
and the average wage which now stands at about 77,000 drams ($250)
per month. This will be held up by the government as a further
indication of rising living standards and declining poverty. The
government says the proportion of Armenian living below the poverty
line has fallen from about 50 percent to below 27 percent since the
start of double-digit growth in 2002.
Opposition politicians and other government critics question the
credibility of these figures, saying that the official poverty line is
set too low and does not take into account the increased cost of life
in Armenia. They also say economic growth is slower than is claimed
by the authorities.
The past year also saw Armenia's trade deficit reach a new high of
just over $2 billion as a result of an almost 50 percent jump in
imports. Armenian exports rose at a far more modest rate of 23.7
percent to $1.22 billion. Large-scale remittances from Armenians
working abroad remain the main source of financing the huge imbalance.