Armenia s gross international reserves 14.2% down as of Oct 2024

ArmInfo. Armenia's gross international reserves (GIR) decreased by 14.2% per annum or $592.2  million to $3.574 billion by October 2024, while a year ago an increase of 11.4% or $426.7 million was recorded. Thus, GIR continues to move away from the historical maximum of $4.2 billion recorded in  August 2023. 

This is evidenced by data from the Central Bank of the Republic of  Armenia. Of these, the lion's share - $3.565 billion - falls on  external assets in foreign currency, and the share of SDR in the IMF  amounted to $9.2 million. According to the regulator's report,  year-on-year (September 2024 to September 2023), external assets in  foreign currency decreased by 14.4%, and the share of SDR in the IMF  jumped 15.3 times, while a year earlier there was an increase in  external assets in foreign currency by 12% and a significant decline  in the share of SDR in the IMF by 97%. Over the 9 months of 2024, GMR  decreased slightly - by 0.8% or $28.3 million (against an increase of  1.3% or $54 million over the 9 months of 2023). 

This was provoked by a decline in external assets in foreign currency  by 1%, in parallel with which there was a jump in the share of SDR in  the IMF by 17.5 times. A year earlier, for the first 9 months of  2023, the dynamics of the GMR components were also mixed, but then  there was an increase in assets in foreign currency by 1.4% and a  decline in the share of SDR in the IMF by 90.7%.

However, in the third quarter, Armenia's GMR demonstrated growth by  6.5% (or by $219.4 million), which was provoked by a similar growth  in external assets in freely convertible currency by 6.6%, with an  increase in the share of SDR in the IMF by 20.5%. A year earlier, in  the third quarter of 2023, the growth of GMR was slightly higher -  6.6% (or by $256.6 million), but then there was an increase in  external assets in freely convertible currency by 6.8% with a  decrease in the share of SDR in the IMF by 93.6%.

In monthly terms, a decline in GMR was recorded in January-May (11%),  after which growth began in June (12% for June-August), but already  in September the dynamics again turned towards a decline (1%).

Armenia's gross international reserves (GIR) decreased by 12.4% or  $510 million in 2023, amounting to $3.602 billion, while in 2022  there was an increase of 27.3% or $882 million, to $4.112 billion. In  particular, external assets in foreign currency decreased by 12.3% to  $3.601 billion, with a 92% decline in the share of SDR in the IMF to  $0.5 million, while in 2022 there was an increase of 28.4% in the  former and a decline of 81.3% in the latter. It is worth noting that  for 2023, both the GMR and external assets in foreign currency  reached a new record high in August - $4.220 billion and $4.217  billion, respectively, and the historical maximum of the SDR share in  the IMF was recorded two years earlier - $178.2 million in August  2021. 

The share of bank gold in Armenia's GMR was reset to zero back in  December 2003. Let us recall that in October 2024, after holding an  additional virtual discussion on the fourth review under the stand-by  arrangement (SBA) with Armenia, the IMF announced the provision of  SDR 18.4 million (about $24.5 million) to the country, bringing the  total amount of access to SDR 92 million (about $122.7 million).   These funds will be used to cover the deficit of the state budget of  Armenia in 2024. The SBA agreement for the fourth review is subject  to approval by the IMF Executive Board, which is scheduled to  consider the review in mid-December.