Armenia`s authorities seeking to replenish budget at any cost -  economist 

ArmInfo. The placement of Eurobonds in the amount of $750 million at an extremely high rate of 7.1% per annum indicates a deterioration in the situation in the  Armenian economy. This assessment was made by economist, former  member of parliament from the Prosperous Armenia faction Mikael  Melkumyan.

"Politics and political processes are inevitable in any country, but  the power of a given state is largely determined by economic policy  and economic processes.

Official indicators characterizing the socio-economic situation in  Armenia in recent months indicate a deterioration in the situation,"  he wrote on the social network.

In particular, he noted, the pace of economic growth is slowing down,  foreign trade turnover has decreased by several tens of percent,  large-scale investments are absent, and the share of the real sector  of the economy, i.e. industry, agriculture and construction, in the  structure of the gross domestic product has decreased to a scale  unseen since the economic biography of independent Armenia.

And in these conditions, the economist noted, instead of actively  implementing a policy of widespread promotion of economic freedoms  and investments, the financial and tax pressure on the shoulders of  businesses and citizens is sharply increasing.

We are talking about changing the relevant provisions of the  , according  to which from now on, if an administrative act has been applied to  any enterprise or citizen, say, by imposing a fine on them, for  example, in the amount of 100 thousand, 1 million or 100 million...  then, of course, you can challenge it in the administrative court,  but before that, you must pay a mandatory fine or penalty. In the  following years, depending on the court's decision, they will get  this money back or not (The Ministry of Justice, in particular,  proposes to consider Article 83 of the Administrative Procedure Code  of the Republic of Armenia as invalid. The latter states that the  acceptance of a claim for challenge suspends the execution of the  contested administrative act until the entry into force of the  judicial act resolving the case on the merits of this case - ed.).

I wonder what these amounts are in total and annually? I think  billions of drams.

And when they are forced out of economic circulation, do the state  and society benefit or suffer?

If there is an intention to replenish the state budget at any cost  and by force, let them say so, if not, then our people will simply  continue to become poorer.

In fact, all this is incomprehensible.

And, finally, the placement of Eurobonds in the amount of 750 million  dollars at an extremely high rate of 7.1% really speaks of a  financial hyperdeficit>, - noted Mikael Melkumyan.

On March 5, 2025, the Republic of Armenia placed Eurobonds in the  amount of $750 million with a maturity of 10 years (settlement date -  March 12, 2025, maturity date - March 12, 2035). The yield on the  placement was 7.1%, the coupon income was 6.75% (placement cost  97.524%). As noted on the website of the Ministry of Finance, this is  the fifth issue of Eurobonds by Armenia on the international capital  market, which was envisaged by the RA Law and included in the Borrowing Program for 2025. The net  proceeds from the issue of Eurobonds will be used to finance the  state budget deficit (609 billion drams - ed.).