Armenia’s Economy to Grow by 8.3-8.5% in 2023

YEREVAN — Armenia’s economy is expected to grow by 8.3-8.5% in 2023, and GDP per capita will amount to $8280, Economy Minister Vahan Kerobyan said on Monday.

He also said that the gross volume of investments in the first half pf 2023 grew by 17.5% year-on-yeary. Kerobyan noted that the final data on the investment indicator are available only for 2021, and the final data for 2022 will be available in April this year.

The ratio of Armenia’s trade turnover to its GDP in 2023 is expected to reach 110.9%, Kerobyan said .

He noted that exports of goods and services have grown to 54% of GDP, while the government’s goal is to bring this figure to 60% by 2026. Meanwhile, imports are expected to reach 56.3% of GDP in 2023.

“Our foreign trade balance has narrowed quite a bit. It is still negative, but it allows us to hope that in the near future we will be able to change the value of the trade balance from negative to positive,” Kerobyan said.

According to official statistics, Armenia’s foreign trade in January-October 2023 grew by 41.2% year-on-year to $15.4 billion with exports increasing by 38.5% to $5.81 billion, and e imports growing by 42.9% to $9.6 billion.

He noted also that the goal of bringing the volume of investments to the level of 25% of GDP will be achieved.

The Minister also informed that according to the latest data, there are 748 thousand jobs in Armenia, and the average salary is 260 thousand drams.

As for the unemployment rate, he said it dropped to 11.7% at the end of the second quarter of 2023, and is expected to drop further for the third and fourth quarters.