ArmInfo. "We are still in the scenario that envisages a 3.2% economic growth by the end of 2017 and set a goal to ensure GDP growth in subsequent years by 4.8 and up to 5.7%," Armenian Finance Minister Vardan Aramyan said after the next meeting Government. Meanwhile, according to him, the government in its forecasts takes into account the presence of risks in connection with the emerging conjuncture in foreign markets and the general state of the world economy.
Anyway, Aramyan stressed that the main trade and economic partners of Armenia can ensure this year with good indicators, which inspires optimism. Thus, according to him, in the Russian Federation, the economy is forecasted to grow by 1.5-2% in 2017, while last year it was about reaching 0.8%. "If these optimistic forecasts are confirmed, this will have a positive impact on the Armenian economy, and on ensuring a forecast growth of 3.2%," the minister said, noting that, nevertheless, this bar will be achieved mainly through the use of internal capacity of the country and government's management efforts.
As the main factors of growth, Aramyan called last year's expansionary fiscal policy, which with a certain time lag will positively respond to the state of the economy and the business climate. "At the micro level, we also continue to implement concrete steps that stimulate economic activity," the minister stressed. As an example, he cited government decisions on the deferral of VAT payments by numerous economic entities, and those steps that are aimed at stimulating foreign investment. According to the minister, in the first quarter of this year, the volume of foreign direct investment (FDI) increased by 30%, from AMD 14.9 billion to AMD 18.4 billion by the first quarter of the previous year. The intensification of the economy led to an increase in tax deductions. In April, 107.5 billion AMD were sent to the state treasury as taxes and charges, an indicator that will allow the government to reach the target bar by the end of the year to 1.157 trillion AMD.
To note, earlier, in an exclusive interview with ArmInfo, the Minister of Finance noted that economic growth includes, among other things, the inertial nature and reforms carried out by the government over the past years, naturally affect the current state of the economy and give rise to optimistic forecasts. Therefore, the minister believes, in the medium term, Armenia has the right to claim much higher rates of economic growth. "We should not forget that besides the basic fundamental factors, the measures and actions that are capable of forming positive expectations among the public are very important," Vardan Aramyan emphasized, noting that the level of achieving 3.2% GDP growth this year is not a limit.