Tag Archives: Armenia

Armenia growth to slow

SEPT. 17 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – The Moody’s rating agency joined other analysts by downgrading economic growth predictions for Armenia because of a slowdown in Russia’s sanctions-hit economy, media reported. Moody’s said that Armenia would experience economic growth of 2.1% this year compared to earlier forecasts of 3.2%.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 201, published on Sept. 24 2014)

Armenia to join CU soon

SEPT. 17 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Armenia will join the Russia-led Customs Union on Oct. 9, Leonid Slutsky, head of Russian State Duma Committee on CIS told Interfax news agency. Armenia has previously said that it is aiming to join the Customs Union sometime this year although it has not set a date.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 201, published on Sept. 24 2014)

Sanctions on Russia hit Armenian cheese industry

SEPT. 24 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Each cloud, so the saying goes, has a silver lining. For Armenia’s economy, hit badly by EU and US imposed sanctions on its main trading partner Russia, this could be its cheese industry.

Last month in retaliation for EU sanctions, Russia banned most agriculture imports from the EU. One of the biggest imports was cheese. There is now a shortage of cheese in Russia, presenting its neighbours, including Armenia, with an opportunity, as Armen Gigoyan, head of Armenia’s cheese manufacturers’ union explained.

“We supply approximately 1,500 tonnes of cheese to Russia every year. Under the current vacuum conditions in the Russian market, we could export up to 5,000 tonnes, but shortage will occur on the domestic market once we exceed 2,000 tonnes,” he said according to media reports.

Russia imports around 150,000 tonnes of cheese every year, Mr Gigoyan said, half from the EU. With economists downgrading Armenia’s economic growth prospects, news of a potential gap in the market has to be welcome. The Armenian consumer, though, who may find that the price of cheese has increased in supermarkets may not agree.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 201, published on Sept. 24 2014)

Opinion poll in Armenia backs Customs Union membership

SEPT. 10 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – An opinion poll in Armenia has highlighted support for joining the Russia-led Customs Union, despite sanctions against Kremlin-linked companies that have triggered a negative knock-on effect on the Armenian economy.

The poll carried out by Gallup last month showed that 60% of people in Yerevan still favoured joining the Customs Union later this year, media reported.

Aram Havasardyan, Gallup’s representative in Armenia, said that this was a slight drop from the 70% who favoured membership of the Customs Union in 2013.

Clearly support for Russia has held up in Armenia despite the sanctions against Russia imposed on it by the US and the EU because of its meddling in Ukraine. This is important for President Serzh Sargsyan who has been pushing for membership.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 200, published on Sept.17 2014)

Armenia launches PR campaign

SEPT. 11 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Armenia’s president Serzh Sargsyan is spearheading a publicity drive to promote the country, the BBC reported. Mr Sargsyan wants expatriate Armenians to write positive stories about their homeland in a PR drive called One Armenian, One Article.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 200, published on Sept.17 2014)

Armenian invests in education

SEPT. 11 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Armenia’s parliament ratified two loan deals with the International Development Association (IDA) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) worth $30m to modernise the state education system, media reported.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 200, published on Sept.17 2014)

Armenia jewellery output falls

SEPT. 9 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Armenia’s jewellery output fell by over 41% in the first six months of the year, the national statistics agency reported, underlining the problems facing the economy. Jewellery processing is one of Armenia’s most important industries. Sanctions on Russia have severally dented Armenian economic growth this year.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 199, published on Sept. 10 2014)

Greece bans denial of Armenia genocide

SEPT. 9 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Greece’s parliament ratified a bill that banned denial of an alleged genocide by Turkish Ottoman forces on Armenians a century ago.

This elevates recognition of the alleged genocide to a crime to denying it.

The vote, which was close, is a success for Armenian lobbyists who have been campaigning across the world for countries to recognise their plight from Turkey towards the end of the First World War as genocide.

Turkey has always denied the charge and instead said Armenians were killed in the chaotic aftermath of the War.

Greece and Armenia are natural allies against Turkey. Both sides have their animosities with their bigger, more powerful neighbour and it is probably unsurprising that Greece has joined a small group in making denial of the so-called Armenian genocide a crime.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 199, published on Sept. 10 2014)

EU pledges Armenia aid

SEPT. 8 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – The European Union has promised the give around $200m to Armenia by 2017 to help it develop its private sector, media reported. The package is part of a wider tranche of aid earmarked for counties surrounding the EU, including Azerbaijan and Belarus. Armenia has opted for closer.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 199, published on Sept. 10 2014)

Armenia still looking to CU

SEPT. 2 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Officials in Armenia have been mounting a PR campaign to persuade people that sanctions on Russia and their negative effect on its economy will not stop the country joining its Customs Union. Joining the Russia-led Customs Union has become a major policy plank for Armenia’s leaders.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 198, published on Sept. 3 2014)