Armenia’s Economic Activity in the First 9 Months of 2023 Up 9.7%

YEREVAN — Armenia’s economic activity in the first 9 months of 2023 was up 9.7% when compared to the same time span of 2022, the National Statistical Committee (NSC) said today.

The growth in September 2023 as opposed to 2022 September was up 5.6% and up 3.7% compared to August this year. According to the official data, all economic sectors saw growth, except for production of industrial goods and electricity generation.

The industrial output was down 0.6% to over 1.8 trillion drams. It was also down 4.3% in 2023 September compared to 2022 September. The agricultural gross output amounted to about 619.7 billion drams, up 1.7% as opposed to the first 9 months of 2022.

The construction sector grew by 17% year-on-year to 349.3 billion drams. In September 2023 it was up 15.7% from 2022 September.

According to the statistical data, the domestic trade grew to over 3.2 trillion drams, up 23.1% from the same period of 2022. In September 2023 it was up 23.5% when opposed to 2022 September.

The services sector (without trade) grew to over 3.7 trillion drams, up 23.3% from the same period of 2022. In September of the current year compared to September of the last year, the sector grew by 24.2%. No data was available on average monthly gross salary.

Armenian government’s growth projection for 2023 is 7%; the inflation is expected to be 4% (±1.5%). The Central Bank’s growth forecast is 6.9%, with 12-month inflation expected to be slightly below the 4% target.

Armenia’s foreign trade in the first 9 months of 2023 amounted to over $13.7 billion, surging by 47.2% from the same time span of 2022, according to the National Statistical Committee.

It said in September 2023 alone the foreign trade when compared to September last year, was up 15.9%, and up 7.3% when compared to August 2023. The foreign trade turnover in Armenian drams was worth over 5.3 trillion drams.

According to the statistics, Armenian exports soared by 48.5%, to over $5.2 billion. In September, 2023 alone compared to September last year, they were up 31.5% and compared to August this year they were up 29.5%. In AMD equivalent, exports in January-September 2023 amounted to over 2 trillion.

Imports during the reporting period totaled about $8.5 billion, recording a 46.4% increase compared to January-September 2022.

In September of the current year alone, imports grew by 5.6% year-on-year and decreased by 6% from the previous month of August. In AMD equivalent, imports totaled about 3.3 trillion.

Fitch predicted for the Armenian economy 6.1% growth in 2023, Moody’s forecast is 7%, and that of S&P is 7.5%.

The World Bank estimates that Armenia’s GDP growth will be 4.4% this year, the EDB expects it to grow by 7.5%, the EBRD’s growth forecast is 5%.