ArmInfo. The business community of Armenia called on the government to find assistance mechanisms in connection with the revaluation of the dram.
Representatives of the business segment expressed their demands during the meeting with Economy Minister Vahan Kerobyan and Finance Minister Tigran Khachatryan.
According to the press service of the Ministry of Economy, earlier a number of Armenian entrepreneurs addressed in an open letter to the state departments of the Republic of Armenia and the Central Bank, in which they spoke about the consequences caused to businesses due to the revaluation of the dram.
The meeting was attended by exporters, developers, representatives of high technology and other sectors that provide economic development.
As Economy Minister Vahan Kerobyan noted on his Facebook page, an agreement was reached with the business community to organize another meeting in the near future to determine a further plan of action in connection with the situation.
It should be reminded that in early June, in connection with the current situation, Chairman of the Mantashyants Entrepreneurs Union Vahram Mirakyan, noted that due to the revaluation of the national currency in Armenia, the exporters of agricultural products, beverages, as well as the tourism sector, the IT sector and developers suffered the most. In particular, he stressed that due to the dram's revaluation, the sectors that create added value and bring money to the country mainly suffer. At the same time, the head of the Union stressed that the financial authorities of the country would benefit. They are afraid of incurring reputational damage due to inflation, because to stop the dram's revaluation, , it will be necessary to buy the currency, which in turn will spur inflation. "In short, officials are sacrificing long-term development and growth to give the impression of short-term gain," he concluded.
Earlier, Armenian Minister of Economy Vahan Kerobyan, commenting on the situation with the dram's revaluation, stressed that monetary policy should contribute to the country's economic growth, helping exporters of the manufacturing industry and the IT sector that provides services. In this regard, he stressed that exporters and the IT sector are concerned about the dram's revaluation (on average by 18% per annum by June 9 this year - Ed.) and in these conditions the Central Bank should start using new tools. "We understand their concerns about inflation, but we think that now everything needs to be done in such a way that important branches of the economy do not suffer," Kerobyan noted, stressing that the Regulator has the tools to ensure a more balanced exchange rate.
It should be noted that in the foreign exchange retail market of Armenia from October 2021 to June 22, 2022, the dram revalued against the dollar by 14% (from 485 AMD/$1 on average), against the euro - by 22% (from 563 AMD/1EUR on average), while devaluing against the ruble by 6% (from 6.7 AMD/1RUB on average).
It is appropriate to note that the unprecedented western sanctions imposed on Russia account for the highly volatile market since this March. In particular, this year, from February 24 to June 22, in the retail currency market of Armenia, the dram devalued against the Russian ruble by 19% - to 7.1 AMD/1RUB on average. At the same time, during this period, the dram revalued both against the US dollar - by 13% to 417 AMDs / $ 1, and against the euro - by 19% to 439.5 AMD / 1 EUR.
