IN EDUARD AGHAJANOV’S OPINION, DEPRECIATION OF DOLLAR IN ARMENIA HAS NO
ECONOMIC EXPLANATION

YEREVAN, JUNE 30, NOYAN TAPAN. The decline in the exchange rate of the
US dollar in Armenia has no economic explanation, economist Eduard
Aghajanov said at the June 29 press conference. According to him, these
fluctuations of the exchange rate are not in line with global
tendencies. Thus, the dollar appreciated in Armenia in April 2007,
before the parliamentary elections, although the dollar’s exchange rate
fell in the world at that time. After the elections – in May and June,
the dollar started strengthening in the world, whereas in Armenia it
depreciated. In the economist’s opinion, importers receive superprofits
as a result of these artificial fluctuations.

E. Aghajanov said that in 2003, the dollar’s exchange rate was 580
drams, while now it makes 340 drams: so when exchanging 100 dollars for
drams, an Armenian citizen loses 24 thousand drams. Taking into account
the fact that 1.5 billion dollars flow into Armenia annually, the
population loses 360 billion drams or over a billion dollars as
compared with 2003.

According to the economist, if the decline in the dollar’s exchange
rate or the appreciation of the Armenian dram had been a result of
Armenia’s economic growth, an inflation would have occured. The
government could have made businessmen reduce prices by using
mechanisms of taxing their superprofits but it is not done. E.
Aghajanov said that even prices of public services do not decline,
though they are regulated by the commission created with this aim.