YEREVAN, March 31. /ARKA/. Armenian government intends to concentrate its efforts on curbing inflation risks in 2010, Finance Minister Tigran Davtyan said at a press conference on Wednesday.

“In addition to compensations for the poor, the government is also taking and will take measures to stem inflation,” he said.

The minister said that inflation risks would be higher in 2010 than in the previous year.

He finds inflation as natural phenomenon in post-crisis period.

As a rule, after the crisis, when public pessimism melts away giving room for optimism, demand and supply are growing and inflation risks run high as a result.

“This is not an Armenian phenomenon,” Davtyan said.

He said that the government and the central bank have necessary instruments for curbing inflation.

They will lower budget deficit, raise refinancing rate, improve environment for competition and amend laws to ensure close-to-planned inflation rate.

The government has planned 4±1.5% inflation in the 2010 state budget.

Armenia recorded 6.5% inflation in 2009 and 8.2% inflation in January and February 2010, compared with the same months of the previous year.-0--