ArmInfo. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has prepared an analysis of alternative export markets for Armenian exporters. Head of the Armenian Economic Department Vahan Kerobyan attended the corresponding event, organized by USAID in cooperation with the Ministry of Economy.
During the event, he stressed that this is an extremely important work carried out by USAID, since overdependence on one market makes vulnerable not only exporters, but also the entire economy of Armenia. "As a result of this analysis, we will understand what potential Armenian goods have in alternative markets and what steps are needed to diversify our exports," the minister said. According to him, the ratio of exports to GDP in 2022 was 48%, and Q1 2023 alone - 62.6%, which exceeded the target for 2026.
The event was also attended by USAID Mission Director for Armenia John Allelo , expert of the USAID project to improve the business environment in Armenia, Head of Management Advisory at Ameria Group Inc. Tigran Jrbashyan , other officials of the sector, and international experts.
According to the data of the RA Statistical Committee, the share of Russia increased from 31.6% to 34.3% in the foreign trade turnover of Armenia, on a y-o-y terms, against the backdrop of a significant increase in the share in exports from 28.3% to 49%, while the share in imports decreased from 33.4% to 25.8%. Thus, leadership in foreign trade turnover in general, and in exports and imports in particular, continues to be held by Russia. In particular, the foreign trade turnover between Russia and Armenia in Jan-May 2023 exceeded $2.5 billion, with an acceleration of y-o-y growth from 39.2% to 2- fold, thanks to a surge in exports with an imperceptible slowdown in import growth. Thus, the volume of exports of goods from Armenia to Russia increased 3.3-fold year-on-year, while a modest 32.7% growth was observed in the same period of 2022. At the same time, the upward pace of imports of goods from Russia to Armenia slightly slowed down - from 42.5% to 42%. Moreover, such a sharp change in the y-o-y dynamics of both exports and imports is explained by the consequences of the unprecedented scale of anti- Russian sanctions applied by the collective West. As a result, the volumes of exports to Russia and imports from Russia amounted to $1.3 billion and $1.2 billion, respectively, in Jan-May 2023.
