Former Armenian prime minister questions economic growth projections
02.11.2010,
23:00
Former Armenian prime minister Hrant Bagratian questioned today all economic growth projections made for this year, saying the government will claim at the end of the year that it has overfulfilled the 1.2% GDP growth, forecasted by it for 2010.
YEREVAN, November 2, /ARKA/. Former Armenian prime minister Hrant Bagratian questioned today all economic growth projections made for this year, saying the government will claim at the end of the year that it has overfulfilled the 1.2% GDP growth, forecasted by it for 2010. Speaking at a news conference he said there will be no growth at all.
According to government data, Armenian economy expanded 2.8% in Jan.-Sept. year-on-year. The World Bank projects that it will grow this year by 4-5% while IMF’s projection is 4.8%. The ex-prime minister who served in the administration of first post-Soviet Armenian president Levon Ter-Petrosian, questioned also the reliability of high growth indicators posted for the first half of the year, saying those figures should be interpreted cautiously because they were compared with 2009 when Armenian was hit severely by crisis.
‘We have gone down back to 2007 level. The industrial outcome grew a little this year, but only in comparison with last year, when our economy saw an unprecedented slump. Now we are seeing a growth, but it does mean the economy is growing,’ he said.
According to official figures, Armenian industrial output rose by 10.9% in Jan.-Sept. year-on-year to total 579.1 billion Drams. The former prime minister projected also a 7-10% inflation rate growth for the year, up from 4% (±1,5%), projected by the government. In Jan.-Oct. this year it rose to 7.9%, according to official figures. -0-
According to government data, Armenian economy expanded 2.8% in Jan.-Sept. year-on-year. The World Bank projects that it will grow this year by 4-5% while IMF’s projection is 4.8%. The ex-prime minister who served in the administration of first post-Soviet Armenian president Levon Ter-Petrosian, questioned also the reliability of high growth indicators posted for the first half of the year, saying those figures should be interpreted cautiously because they were compared with 2009 when Armenian was hit severely by crisis.
‘We have gone down back to 2007 level. The industrial outcome grew a little this year, but only in comparison with last year, when our economy saw an unprecedented slump. Now we are seeing a growth, but it does mean the economy is growing,’ he said.
According to official figures, Armenian industrial output rose by 10.9% in Jan.-Sept. year-on-year to total 579.1 billion Drams. The former prime minister projected also a 7-10% inflation rate growth for the year, up from 4% (±1,5%), projected by the government. In Jan.-Oct. this year it rose to 7.9%, according to official figures. -0-
