T. SARGSYAN SAYS THERE IS ALREADY CERTAIN POSITIVE STIMULUS IN RA ECONOMY

ARMENPRESS
July 23, 2009

YEREVAN, JULY 23, ARMENPRESS: There is already certain positive
stimulus in RA economy, said Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan at
the today’s session of the government pointing out to the statistical
data on the first semester of the running year issued by the Armenian
Statistical Service.

According to him, there are notable positive tendencies especially
in construction sphere; as of June, an unprecedented growth by about
230 % has been registered here. According to him, it is conditioned
by the periodicity of that sphere on one hand, and by the formation
of positive expectations on the other, as well as by the support
projects implemented by the government.

The Prime Minister said that the industrial fall was about 12 % in the
first semester of 2009, in agriculture – 2, 5 %. The season phenomena
had their impact on the latter as well. In August the situation in
the sphere may be improved.

The index of wholesale trade, which Tigran Sargsyan considers an
important factor, has increased despite the reduction of private
transfers and economic fall of nearly 16 %. He conditions it by
increase of salaries by 13 %, the pensions – by 14 %, in the result
of which the paying capacity of thousands of people has increased.

The extension of volumes of cash register appliance has in its turn
promoted to uncovering the retailed trade out of the shadow economy,
and to ensure greater volumes are registered.

"The shadow in the Armenian economy is still quite high, but the
appliance of cash registers allows to register positive results,
which influences on macro-economic indexes", – T. Sargsyan said.

A certain growth has also been registered in the sphere of services
as of the semester. There are certain improvements also in external
trade turnover: the registered volumes made only the 54 % of the last
year’s indexes, the import volumes – 72 %. But there is a positive
shift in June compared with May.