Will Turkish producers capture Armenia's market?

YEREVAN, June 29. /ARKA/. In an interview with Armenian Public Television Economy Minister Vahan Kerobyan downplayed concerns that Turkish producers would seize the Armenian market if regional communications were unblocked.

"Our studies and analyses show that in the short term Armenia’s GDP growth of 30% is a rather probable scenario. There are also studies on this subject made by the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank," Kerobyan said.

As an example, he cited direct flights between Armenia and Turkey, which have linked Armenia with other countries. According to Kerobyan, this led also to a 30% increase in the number of tourists visiting Armenia this year.

"The stronger our ties with the world, the more 'oxygen' our economy gets," Kerobyan said.

Earlier this year Kerobyan said that Armenia's trade with Turkey soared to about $320 million in 2022.

"Our trade turnover with Turkey last year reached about $320 million and consisted mainly of imports of Turkish goods, as the Turkish border is open for exports to Armenia, and actually is closed for imports of Armenian goods," he told a meeting of the parliamentary committee on economic issues in March.

The minister said that Turkey selectively opens the border for certain categories of Armenian exports, which are important for its economy, while the market is closed for other goods.

"Today, it is mostly impossible to export goods from Armenia to Turkey because Turkey has not opened the border for Armenian goods. Under these conditions, it is impossible to assess what potential Armenian goods have in the Turkish market," he said. -0-