ArmInfo. The problem of underfulfillment of both current and capital expenditures remains pressing. Armenian Finance Minister Vahe Hovhannisyan stated this on November 24 at a meeting of the parliamentary committee on financial, budgetary, and credit issues, presenting a report on the state budget execution for the first nine months of this year.
In particular, the minister explained, the current expenditure variances primarily relate to social benefits and pensions, grants and other expenses, and the purchase of goods and services. In terms of capital expenditures, the underfulfillment is primarily related to defense programs, road network improvements, and the implementation of school and preschool construction and renovation programs.
The minister indicated that, according to the clarification, revenues by the end of 2025 should exceed the 2 trillion 873.6 billion drams projected in the current year's state budget (of which 2 trillion 720.3 billion drams will be tax revenues and state duties) by 20 billion drams. Expenditures will exceed the planned 3 trillion 441.6 billion drams (of which 2 trillion 706.8 billion drams will be allocated for current expenditures) by 33.3 billion drams, and the deficit is expected to increase by 12.5 billion drams compared to the recorded 604 billion drams.
During the reporting period, RA state budget revenues for the first nine months amounted to 2,125.5 billion drams, achieving 101.6% of the target set in the revised nine-month program.
Compared to the same period last year, state budget revenues increased by 14.3%, or 265.1 billion drams. RA state budget expenditures amounted to 2,205.4 billion drams, achieving 85.7% of the target set in the revised nine-month program. Compared to the same period last year, state budget expenditures increased by 14.1%, or 272.1 billion drams.
For the first nine months of 2025, the RA state budget was executed with a deficit of 79.9 billion drams, compared to the planned 480.3 billion drams for the first nine months and 73 billion drams for the same period last year. In the first nine months of 2025, Armenia's export revenues decreased by 46.8%, primarily due to a sharp decline in the re-export of gold, platinum, and silver. Meanwhile, exports of goods of Armenian origin increased by 9.1%.
Over the same period, imports of goods decreased by 33.4%, again due to a sharp decline in re-export volumes. "Excluding this factor, the growth in imports is in line with the growth in domestic demand," the minister noted. During the reporting period, tourist influx to Armenia increased by 0.8%. However, a decline was recorded in the number of tourists from Russia and India (1.7 and 0.7%, respectively).
From January to September, the economic activity indicator increased by 7.6% (due to growth in the services and construction sectors). The number of officially unemployed individuals decreased by 15%, reaching 36,821, while the number of employees increased by 4.8%, reaching 788,647. The average monthly salary increased by 5.3%, reaching 295,042 drams. The average salary in the public sector was 227,888 drams, while in the private sector it was 320,901.
"Against a backdrop of 3.3% inflation, the real growth of the average monthly salary was 1.9%,> the Finance Minister stated.
Over the first nine months, the dram appreciated by 1.2% against the US dollar. The dram devalued by 1.6% against the euro and 5.3% against the Russian ruble.
Armenia's public debt reached $14.2 billion (5.4 trillion drams) as of October 1, 2025, accelerating its annual growth from 10.4% to 13.5%. This is due to improved external debt dynamics, while domestic debt growth continues to slow. Specifically, external debt reversed its annual trend from a 3.4% decline to a 9.6% increase, exceeding $6.9 billion (2.6 trillion drams), while domestic debt continued to stall, growing from 29.1% to 17.5%, reaching $7.3 billion (2.8 trillion drams). Moreover, domestic debt began to outweigh external debt in July of this year, subsequently strengthening its dominance by a more pronounced margin each month.
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