CBA RAISES REFINANCING INTEREST RATE BY 0.25% TO 6.5%

Noyan Tapan
April 2, 2008

YEREVAN, APRIL 2, NOYAN TAPAN. At the April 2 sitting, the Central
Bank of Armenia (CBA) Board raised the interest rate of refinancing
by 0.25% to 6.5%.

According to the CBA press service, 1.4% inflation was registered in
March on February 2008, as a result of which the 12-month inflation
made 9.6%, which is by about 3% higher than the level in late 2007.

The CBA Board stated that the high inflation pressures in international
market continued to get stronger in the first quarter, affecting
the domestic prices of foodstuffs. At the same time, the secondary
influence of the indicated developments has become apparent by leading
to an increase in nonfood commodity prices and service tariffs.

The CBA Board believes that inflation pressures will continue in
the near future, and the gradual tightening of monetary and credit
conditions aims to mitigate the inflation expectations and neutralize
the secondary impact of the indicated developments.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress