Armenian Fnance Minister: GDP Growth may exceed indications set out in budget

ArmInfo. If the recent  positive  intentions in economy are kept, the growth of Armenia's economy  activities may form more than the indication of 3,2 % set forth by  2017 Draft Budget, Vardan Aramyan, the Armenian Finance Mister,  shared  an opinion to journalists. 

According to the Minister, all the risks related to the budget  implementation, are estimated by the Ministry of Finance at two  levels. According to the Ministry, the progressive temp of the  economical growth in Armenia in 2017 will be preconditioned with such  external factors, like global economy cgrowth for 1%, international  pricing at stock markets, the oil price increase in the limits of  16-17%, and the rehabilitation of Russian economy. Any negative  derivations of the scenario set by the Draft Budget 2017, will  naturally impact the possibility of 3,2% GDP growth. Regarding the  issue of the internal risks estimation, the Ministry of Finance pays  a special attention to the behavior of society and industrial  entities. The positive basis set out by the budget, should sound  positively for investors. "If due to ay reasons the creation of  business promotion tools turns impossible, that will impact the  industrial entities and, consequently, whole the economy,"  Minister  stated. 

 "However, the risks are oriented not only to the decrease of  indicators, but also to increase. An example of a positive risk could  appear such circumstances,  which could not be forecasted. According  to Aramyan, international financial stocks react victory in a very  positive mode. All the indexes started to grow up, and as a result  for example, the copper price grew from USD 4800 to 5600 per tone.  "The basic prices indications for the copper fixed in the 2017 Budget  are lower, and if this value remais the same in the next year, it  will have a positive impact on Armenian GDR growth, securing an  indication higher than 3,2%," Minister stated. 

The 2017 Draft Budget estimates the GPD nominal growth at 5%, or AMD  5405 bln. The economy growth will form 3,2%, within the deflator  index  of 1,7 (which, according to the Ministry of Finance, this year  will form around 2,4%), with a deficite of  AMD 150,1 bln. The GDP  deflator index is not set as per  the end of the  current year, and  in 2017 this indicator will form around 101,7%. The balance part of  the budget is planned to increase  for AMD 27 bln up to AMD 1.210 bln   in 2017, and the expenditures part should be decreased for AMD 13 bln  down to  AMD 1.360 bln ( according to the current rate - about USD 2,  87 bln).  The incomes/ GDP correlation is 22,4%. In the revenues part  USD 1.135 bln will be capsulated by taxes and fees ( versus AMD 1.065  bln in 2016), AMD 31 bln will be formed by grants  (versus 31,3 bln  in 2016), AMD 44 bln - other incomes (versus 25,8 bln in 2016).