Thursday, December 26 2019 12:45

ArmInfo. GDP growth of at least 7.5%2will be ensured in Armenia in 2019. This forecast was made by the Minister of Economy of the Republic of Armenia Tigran  Khachatryan on December 26 at a meeting of the RA Government.

According to him, it is expected that export volumes will increase by  10% this year. Given those indicators that are already registered for  the first 11 months of this year, the minister continued, forecasts  for GDP growth and exports look quite realistic. "And if a few months  ago only assumptions were made, now it is possible to speak with  confidence about the achievement of these indicators," Tigran  Khachatryan noted.

He especially pointed to the growth of export volumes in a number of  positions. In particular, over the 11 months of this year, an  increase in the volume of export of brandy was recorded, which  amounted to 27%, which, according to the minister, is very important  because it affects the agricultural sector. According to him,  development in this sector will continue, especially given the fact  that wine exports for the reporting period increased by 50%, which is  a new development in the country's economy. Over the past 2 years,  export of these types of products also had an upward trend, but for  the first time they managed to reach a $ 24 million export index of  wine. In this regard, as noted by Tigran Khachatryan, it is extremely  important that the export of fruit wines grows, with volumes of 75 %

In addition, the export of crop production, in particular, cucumbers  and strawberries produced in greenhouses, increased by 18.5%. The  volume of chocolate exports increased by 15%, which is also a new  direction in the development of the country's economy. Both chocolate  manufacturers positively assess the prospects of expanding foreign  markets for marketing their products. In turn, the Prime Minister of  the Republic of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan pointed to an unprecedented  increase in the export of fruit wines.  According to him, the  formation of a new brand begins in the country. In the world, as the  head of government noted, fruit wines are not widespread, and such a  significant increase directly indicates the quality of domestic  products and the growing interest in it in international markets.  "The matter may concern  know-how," the prime minister stated,  pointing out the importance of growth in exports of cucumbers and  strawberries, which is evidence of the industrialization of  agricultural production.  To note, according to preliminary data of  the RA Statistical Committee, the growth of economic activity in  Armenia in January-November 2019 accelerated to 7.5% from 5.7% for 11  months of 2018. The growth drivers were the services sector,  industrial sector and trade, amid a modest rise in the construction  sector and a decline in the energy sector. In November 2019 alone  there was a 8.5% decline with a y-o-y growth of 10.1%, while a year  earlier November decline was 10.3% with a y-o-y growth of 3.6% .Y-o-y  growth in economic activity in January-November 2019 continues to be  supported to a greater extent by the services sector - by 14.8%, the  industrial sector - by 9.3% and trade - by 9.2%, and in the smaller  construction sector - by 4.5%, with the decline in the energy sector  by 3.4%, against the growth recorded a year earlier in all these  sectors was 18.4%, 4.1%, 9.2%, 5.5% and 2.4%, respectively. For the  agricultural sector, only quarterly data are published, but a year  earlier, in January-November, an acceleration of decline was noted  from 3.9% to 8.1%.