RUSSIAN ECONOMIST: IF WORLD FINANCIAL CRISIS ESCALATES INTO ECONOMIC, IT MAY AFFECT ARMENIA

ARKA
Oct 14, 2008

YEREVAN, October 14. /ARKA/. If the world financial crisis escalates
into economic, it may affect Armenia more or less, Dmitry Sorokin,
the first deputy director of Institute of Economy of Russian Academy
of Sciences, said on Tuesday in an interview with ARKA News Agency.

"Today crisis is seen in financial, not economic sector", he said in
his interview.

He thinks the world financial crisis will have no major impact on
Armenia, since the country’s involvement in the world financial system
is not so great – Russia’s involvement is greater.

Sorokin said that a new phase of economic cycle is expected to start
by late 2009 or early 2010. He thinks the world economy will grow
and things will change.

However, now global decline is seen.

Central Bank of Armenia says in its report on forecasts and monetary
policy for 4th Q that the new stage of the world financial crisis
brought volatility and new risks to financial and commodity markets.

Armenian market has not reacted to the fall in world prices, especially
food prices, despite the world prices started falling yet in the
second quarter.

The recent conflict in the region and problems with cargo
transportation added problems to some Armenian that were imperfect
and slow yet before that.