ArmInfo.Governor of the Central Bank of Armenia Martin Galstyan expressed fears that the problem of underfulfillment of budget capital expenditures will not be resolved in 2024 as well.
Speaking in parliament t a parliamentary committee hearing on the 2024 budget, Galstyan noted that according to the draft state budget of the Republic of Armenia for 2024, more than serious capital expenditures will have to be made, which, in turn, may lead to underfulfillment of the provisions of the state budget. "This year, the volume of shortfalls in capital expenditures exceeded the volumes of 2022, and there are fears that the situation will repeat itself next year," Galstyan noted. As he said, in this case, serious inflationary pressures should be expected. As a result, the refinancing rate will increase.
As of now, inflation in the country is recorded at 0.1%, and there is every reason to believe that in 2024 it will be possible to reach the target of 3% (+- 1.5%).
According to the draft state budget, capital expenditures in 2024 will reach 6.6% of GDP or 710 billion drams (which is 27% more than a year ago). Of this, 42% will be allocated to the defense sector.
Another problem, according to the head of the Central Bank, is regulation of the digital currency market. For these purposes, at the end of 2023 - beginning of 2024, a corresponding bill will be submitted to the country's parliament.
According to Galstyan, when developing the document, the Central Bank was guided by the best world experience, which is already being applied by European countries. "We shouldn't expect that we will be as liberal as possible. We believe that regulation should be adequate to the risks," Galstyan said, adding that to regulate the digital currency market, several Central Bank employees were sent for retraining to the University of Cambridge and other leading world centers.
