According to information from the Eurasian Development Bank (EDB), Armenia's economic activity index increased by 8.1% in July 2019 as compared to the same month of 2018, in June 2019, the figure increased by 3.4% in comparison to the previous year, reported arka.am.  

Konstantin Fedorov, an employee from the industry research division of the bank, said that the growth could have been driven by agriculture, where output growth is forecasted for the second half of 2019. He also mentioned growth figures in other major sectors of the economy in July 2019 - the industrial output increased by 16.1%, retail and wholesale trade turnover by 9.1%, and construction by 4.1%.

Fedorov also noted that the budget performance indicators and public debt dynamics for the first half of 2019 indicate financial improvement in Armenia. The state budget surplus in January - June 2019 amounted to 121.9 billion drams (in the same period of the past year there was a deficit of 3.8 billion drams). Revenues in the reporting period amounted to 759 billion drams, an increase of 25.1% in comparison to last year. The growth was driven by the expansion of economic activity, aided by government measures aimed at improving tax collection. Armenia's state debt decreased at the end of June 2019 to 3.308 trillion drams from 3.349 trillion drams at the end of 2018 due to a reduction in external liabilities.

In July 2019, the trade deficit widened due to an increase in some import items. Deliveries of mineral products to Armenia, most of which are natural gas and oil products, amounted to $78.7 million (an increase of 28.4% compared to 2018), and vehicles to $61.3 million (an increase of 97.3%).

At the same time, inflation fell to 0.6% in August 2019 from 1.7% in July. The main factor in the slowdown, according to the Bank’s analyst, was a drop in food prices by 0.3% against the backdrop of growing agricultural production and a high comparison base.

The Eurasian Development Bank is an international financial institution established to promote economic growth in its member states, extend trade and economic ties among them, and support integration in Eurasia through investment. EDB member states are Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan. The bank;s main strategic objectives are searching for and financing integration projects and enhancing cooperation with the governments of its member states, international financial institutions, national development institutions and commercial banks in searching for and discussing new projects.