ArmInfo.The share of Armenia's TOP-5 trade partners — Russia, China, Iran, the UAE, and Germany — decreased in January–April 2026 to a combined 52.5% of the total foreign trade turnover (down from 64.7% or $4.1 billion in January–April 2025), amounting to $3.3 billion in absolute terms.
Two of them — Russia and the UAE — continued to reduce their volumes by 20.7% and 71.2% respectively, slowing down their rates from last year's 62.5% and 74.4%. Meanwhile, foreign trade volumes with China and Germany entered growth territory, rising by 19.4% and 33.7% (reversing from declines of 26.1% and 5.4% a year ago), whereas growth toward Iran slowed from 9.9% to 6.7%. This is evidenced by data from the Statistical Committee of the Republic of Armenia.
Armenia's foreign trade with the EAEU slumped in January–April 2026 by 19.2% year-on-year (compared to a 61.5% decline a year ago) — down to $1.9 billion, while trade with the EU sharply accelerated in growth to 45.2% (up from 4.8% a year ago), reaching $1.1 billion. Moreover, among the EAEU countries, a contraction in volumes is recorded only for the Russian Federation, while the majority of EU countries chose to increase their volumes — namely Germany, Bulgaria, Italy, France, Belgium, Poland, Spain, Austria, Denmark, Lithuania, the Czech Republic, Cyprus, and Portugal, with many of them doing so significantly.
Such a change in the annual dynamics reduced the EAEU's share in the structure of Armenia's foreign trade from 37% to 29.8% (due to the RF — from 35.5% to 28%), while the EU's share, conversely, increased from 11.6% to 16.7%. Specifically, in exports, the EAEU's share decreased from 39.7% to 39,2% (due to the RF — from 36.8% to 36.4%), while the EU's share rose from 7.5% to 15.3%. In imports, a similar pattern is even more pronounced: the EAEU's share dropped from 35.2% to 24.3% (due to the RF — from 34.6% to 23.1%), and the EU's share rose from 14.1% to 17.6%. The market share coverage of the remaining countries representing the leading five changed as follows: China increased its share in exports from 6.5% to 13.8% and reduced it in imports from 15.6% to 14.9%; the UAE heavily cut its share in exports from 29.2% to 8.3% and further reduced its meager share in imports from 0.7% to 0.5%; Germany raised its share both in exports from 1.5% to 1.6% and in imports from 2.7% to 3.8%; Bulgaria raised its share more noticeably in exports from 1.1% to 6.3% than in imports — from 0.2% to 0.6%; the US continues to increase its share in imports from 2.7% to 3.7%, while beginning to downscale in exports from 0.8% to 0.5%; Iraq reduced its share in exports from 4.2% to 4.9% [sic] with a tiny 0.03% in imports; Iran increased its share in imports from 4.9% to 5.3%, cutting its share in exports from 1.3% to 1.1%.
According to exports, the TOP-5 includes Russia, China, the UAE, Bulgaria, and Iraq, with a total volume of $1.6 billion, while the leading five in terms of imports are represented by Russia, China, Iran, Germany, and the US, with a total volume exceeding $2 billion. Both exports and imports are contracting in the direction of Russia and the UAE. In the direction of China, the transition of exports to substantial multi-fold growth is accompanied by imports entering a decline. In the direction of Germany, a sharp slowdown in export growth is observed alongside imports emerging from a slump to achieve high growth. In the direction of the US, a decline in exports has emerged, while imports have moved out of a slump into high double-digit growth. In the direction of Bulgaria, both exports and imports skyrocketed multi-fold. In the direction of Iraq, a sharply slowed growth in exports was accompanied by an even more accelerated multi-fold growth in imports. In the direction of Iran, the decline in exports is accelerating, and import growth is slowing down.
In total, Armenia's foreign trade turnover for January–April 2026 exceeded $6.3 billion, with the annual dynamic improving to a 0.3% growth (compared to a 52.9% slump a year ago). In particular, this reversal in dynamics was noted in imports, which shifted from a 46.5% decline to a 2.5% growth, while exports remained in a decline, albeit with a sharp deceleration in rates from 60.4% to 3.3%, reaching volumes of $3.99 billion and $2.3 billion respectively.
Armenia's negative foreign trade balance for January–April 2026 increased by 12% year-on-year to $1.7 billion. Out of this, negative balances of $347.2 million and $272.7 million represent the trade balance with EU countries and China respectively, with an annual decline in these figures by 6% and 40% respectively. The negative foreign trade balance with the US grew by 60% to $136.3 million, while the negative balance in the direction of Iran proved to be more substantial, standing at $187.3 million with an annual growth of 18%. Armenia's negative foreign trade balance with Russia shrank 6-fold to $76.5 million, reducing the negative balance with EAEU countries by the same margin to $58.5 million. The positive foreign trade balance with the UAE also decreased significantly, dropping 4-fold to $174.1 million. Notably, the positive foreign trade balance increased significantly with Bulgaria (7-fold to $120.7 million), Belgium (5-fold to $42.5 million), Lithuania (4-fold to $3.1 million), and Switzerland (by 62% to $57.7 million). The positive balance in the direction of Iraq grew more modestly, rising by 12% to $112.2 million.
Please note that among the EAEU countries, the foreign trade turnover between Armenia and Kyrgyzstan has multiplied, with a much more impressive growth recorded in imports rather than exports. In the direction of the CIS countries, Armenia significantly increased its foreign trade turnover with Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, both in terms of exports and imports, while the sharply accelerated growth of foreign trade with Ukraine is supported by active import activity.
It is worth noting that according to the Central Bank of Armenia's forecast updated in March of this year, following the nearly identical growth of exports and imports by 30.9–32.7% in 2024 and a subsequent decline in 2025 by 30.5% (for exports) and 23.7% (for imports), the dynamics will already improve toward growth in 2026, rising to 25.5–28.5% for exports and 36.7–34.9% for imports. According to the Central Bank's expectations, the growth trend will continue into 2027, though the growth rates will weaken to 16–19% for exports and 11–14.3% for imports.
The International Monetary Fund, in its December forecast, also expects Armenia's foreign trade to transition from decline to growth in 2026. However, it outlined much more modest export and import growth rates of 2.2–2.1%, with a further moderate acceleration in 2027 to 3.4–3.7%.
