Tag Archives: economy

Kazakh C. Bank cuts interest rates

JULY 11 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Kazakhstan’s Central Bank lowered its key interest rate by two percentage points to 13%, official media reported. The Central Bank cited higher oil prices, slowing inflation and the volatility in global markets after Britain’s referendum to leave the EU as the main factors leading to the rate cut. This is the second rate cut in just over two months.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 289, published on July 15 2016)

Turkmen Union of Industrialists needs cash

JULY 12 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — The Turkmen Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, a lobby group, has allegedly asked local entrepreneurs to pitch in and aid the government’s budget with donations of up to $100,000, the opposition website Chronicles of Turkmenistan said. The request apparently was outlined during a meeting by the Union’s chairman, Alexander Dadayev. Since 2012, the Union established the Party of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, a government-linked party.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 289, published on July 15 2016)

Kazakhstan’s C. Bank bets against sterling

JULY 8 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Kazakhstan’s Central Bank chief Daniyar Akishev said he bet against the sterling ahead of Britain’s referendum to leave the EU, commonly known as Brexit. As he expected market volatility in the aftermath of the vote, Mr Akishev said the Central Bank opened a long position to sell off part of its sterling holdings, effectively gaining from the post-Brexit plunge of the British currency against the US dollar.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 289, published on July 15 2016)

Inflation rises in Azerbaijan

JULY 11 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Azerbaijan’s Statistics Committee said that the country’s six-month inflation reached 10.5% at the end of June, a consequence of the depreciation of the manat currency. When the Central Bank ditched the peg to the US dollar in December, the manat lost around half of its value. In January and February localised protesters rallied against growing prices in food markets. The Statistics Committee said that food prices were up 12%.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 289, published on July 15 2016)

Tajikistan publishes negative forecasts for Somoni currency

JULY 14 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Tajikistan’s finance ministry published a negative forecast for the somoni currency exchange rate over the next few years, saying that the economic crisis that has hit the region since mid-2014 could be far from over. According to the official forecast, the somoni will weaken against the US dollar by 21% next year and by a further 8% in 2018. This week the official exchange rate was 7.9/$1. Much like other currencies in the region, the Tajik somoni has lost a third of its value sine mid-2014, mainly because of a recession in Russia, weakness in oil and gas prices and a drop in confidence in Emerging Markets.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 289, published on July 15 2016)

Kazakhstan to solve trade row with Ukraine

JULY 8 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Asset Asavbayev, director of transport at Kazakhstan’s ministry of industrial development, said Kazakhstan will step in to resolve a row between Russia and Ukraine that has stalled Ukrainian cargo in transit to Central Asia via Russian territory. On July 1, Russian border police enforced a transit ban for Ukrainian goods, citing a Eurasian Economic Union regulation.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 289, published on July 15 2016)

Kyrgyzstan’s GDP falls by 2.3%

JULY 12 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Kyrgyzstan’s GDP fell by 2.3% in the first six months of the year because of lower gold prices. The Statistics Committee said that without accounting for the performance of the Kumtor gold mine, the country’s non-gold GDP grew by 1.2% compared to the same period last year. Higher gold prices since mid-June could now push up the country’s GDP.

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(News report from Issue No. 289, published on July 15 2016)

Azerbaijan’s economy shrinks, recession looms

JULY 14 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Azerbaijan’s Statistics Committee said its GDP shrank by 3.4% in manat terms in the first half of 2016, compared to the same period last year, a reflection of the negative impact that sustained low oil prices have had on the country’s economy.

This confirms concern voiced by international economists and ratings agencies that the Azerbaijani economy was going to contract this year.

Data from the state Statistics Committee showed that Azerbaijan’s GDP shrank in the first quarter of the year and now, although the data is patchy, the statistics appear to suggest that the second quarter of the year also showed that Azerbaijan’s economy had shrunk.

Azerbaijan is particularly vulnerable to low oil prices. Roughly 40% of its GDP is directly derived from oil and gas revenues. The last time that Azerbaijan’s economy shrank was in 2011 when its oil and gas production slipped.

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(News report from Issue No. 289, published on July 15 2016)

Kyrgyzstan’s debt hits $4b

JULY 4 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Kyrgyzstan’s ministry of finance said the country’s debt had hit $4b, a level that parliament set in 2014 as the country’s debt ceiling. Foreign debt accounts for $3.7b of this amount. China’s Exim Bank, the World Bank’s International Development Association and the Asian Development Bank are among Kyrgyzstan’s largest creditors. Kyrgyzstan’s debt/GDP ratio has now surpassed 60%, a level that local politicians have said is worrying.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 288, published on July 8 2016)

Georgia enters Association Agreement with the EU

TBILISI, JULY 1 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — After two years of preparations, Georgia formally entered into an Association Agreement with the EU, a deal touted by its political leaders as another step towards EU membership and one which should also make it easier for Georgian companies to sell products to Europe.

Georgian PM Giorgi Kvirikashvili hailed the adoption of the Association Agreement as one of the most important days in the government’s stated mission of easing Georgia’s visa arrangements with the EU and even becoming an EU member state.

“It cements Georgia’s relations with a partner which, for years, has been our model and end destination”, he said in a press conference.

In a statement, the European Commission’s foreign affairs representative, Federica Mogherini, said the agreement will bring Georgia benefits but reforms were needed before more EU integration was possible.

“The EU is looking forward to further strengthening its cooperation with a country that is still working on crucial reforms in areas such as the rule of law, the accountability rules for public decision-makers and transparency,” she said.

At its core, the EU Association Agreement improves Georgian companies’ access to European markets in exchange for a commitment to improve the rule of law, health and safety standards and democracy.

The EU said that the benefits to Georgia are already being felt. It said that Georgian kiwis, blueberries, nuts, garlic and wine are more readily available in Europe.

On the streets of Tbilisi, most people welcomed further integration with the EU but were unaware of the details of the deal. Even those who had studied it said that it would take time for Georgian companies to get the most out of the agreement.

“The majority of Georgian companies are not ready to start exporting to the EU countries in terms of qualities and certificates,” said Ioseb Kobakhidze, managing director of Georgian Herbs, a dried fruit producer.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 288, published on July 8 2016)