ALL GUYS NEED IS MONEY
Lragir.am
19 June 06
According to economist Edward Aghajanov, Tigran Sargsyan, the president
of the Central Bank of Armenia, lies when he says that the government
does not intervene in the dollar-dram exchange rate.
"It is worthwhile to remind him that on October 7, 2005 he personally
announced that the exchange rate of the dram does not float in Armenia,
it is controlled by the Central Bank."
The exchange rate of the national currency is not an end in itself;
it must foster economic development, whereas we move in the opposite
direction. "Due to the artificial increase of the exchange rate, the
export rate went down by 2.9 percent over the past 4 months. It is very
simple. The high exchange rate of the national currency hinders local
production and export and favors importers, it is a simple axiom,"
says Edward Aghajanov. According to Aghajanov, we should have done
what all the normal countries do.
For instance, the United States had a huge trade deficit, comprising
5 percent of the GDP. The economists alarmed that it threatened
the U.S. economy. Our deficit is a record, 817.5 million drams,
16-17 percent of the GDP. This is very dangerous for our economy. The
United States launched a policy of a low exchange rate of the national
currency to promote local production and export, and make imports
expensive, says Aghajanov, whereas ours "either do not understand or
play in the field of import."
Edward Aghajanov repeats the opinion that the games with the exchange
rate of the dollar and the dram have also a political context.
"If formerly one had to pay 150 thousand drams to appear on a party
ticket, now they have to pay 500 thousand dollars. It is clear that
all the guys need is money to enter the parliament again," concluded
Edward Aghajanov.