ArmInfo. In the commercial sector of Armenia, the turnover for 2017 increased by 14% per annum (against 1% growth in 2016), amounting to 2.6 trillion. AMD ($ 5.4 billion). Only in December 2017, the trade turnover in Armenia increased by 32.1% to 333.6 billion drams ($ 690.5 million).
The acceleration of the upward trend in the trade sector is due to the emergence of retail trade dynamics from a recession to growth, and also by a higher than the growth rate of wholesale trade a year ago. In particular, wholesale trade in 2017 showed an increase of 25.8% per annum - up to 1.2 trillion. AMD ($ 2.4 billion), against the 4.5% growth a year earlier. The volume of purchase / sale of cars in 2017 slowed down the rate of annual growth from 22.5% to 15%, amounting to 113.7 billion drams ($ 235.5 million). Only in December 2017 the turnover of wholesale trade increased by 21.7% to 137 billion drams, and the volume of automobile trade by 0.9% to 14.7 billion drams.
According to the National Statistical Service of Armenia, the retail turnover for 2017g amounted to 1.3 trillion. AMD ($ 2.7 billion), an increase in the annual the calculation by 5.5%, against the 2.6% decline a year earlier. Totally agree December, the turnover of retail trade grew by 52% to 182 billion drams.
In the structure of retail trade, stores (including supermarkets) provide the largest turnover - 79.7% or 1.1 billion drams (with an annual growth of 8%), other retail facilities - 11.5% or 154.2 billion drams (with annual growth by 2.1%), followed by consumer goods markets - 5.2% or 69.1 billion (with an annual decline of 16.8%), stalls and kiosks - 2.1% or 27.7 billion (with annual decline by 1.2%) and agricultural markets - 1.5% or 20.5 billion (with annual growth of 6.1%).
Retail trade dominates the structure of Armenia's total trade turnover - 51.3%, followed by wholesale - 44.3%, and buying / selling cars - 4.4%.
The average calculated exchange rate of the dram to the US dollar was 483.18 AMD / $ 1 in December 2017, and 482.72 AMD / $ 1 in January-December 2017, versus 482.84 AMD / $ 1 in December 2016 and 480, 49 other / $ 1 in January-December 2016.