INFLATION IN 2010 TO BE AROUND 7%: ARMENIAN PM

Tert.am
14:36 ~U 01.04.10

During a meeting today, the Armenian government discussed the
macro-economic indicators of the first quarter of 2010. RA Prime
Minister Tigran Sargsyan said that the study of those indicators
makes it clear that the government’s 2009 bail-out programs are
bearing fruit.

According to Sargsyan, the recorded indicators exceed the government’s
expectations by two-and-a-half times, which, in his words, is accounted
for by the expanding monetary and fiscal policy pursued by the Central
Bank and the Ministry of Finance.

Sargsyan also mentioned that Armenia has entered a phase of high
inflation, conditioned by the same expanding monetary and fiscal
policy, since, on the one hand, economic growth is encouraged, while,
on the other hand, inflation is encouraged.

The task before the government and the Central Bank of Armenia is to
curb the inflation. According to Sargsyan, the inflation in March,
compared to December 2009, was 2.9%, while the average rate of
inflation for the whole year was 8.8%.

Sargsyan also said forecasts have shown that inflation in 2010 will
be around 7%.