YEREVAN, October 29. /ARKA/. Inflation in Armenia will return to the projected rate 4% (±1.5%) in the beginning of the next year, Arthur Javadyan, head of the Central Bank of Armenia said today during budgetary hearings in the National Assembly.

In his words, a year-on-year inflation rate was gradually going down this year and subsided to 0.8% in August 2014 from 5.6% in the end of 2013.

In September 2014, the year-on-year inflation stood at 1.5%.

Javadyan said that the regulator started pursuing a credit restrictions relaxation policy yet in the end of 2013 to contribute to restoration of gross demand.

As a result, the central bank downed the refinancing rate by 1.75 percentage points to 6.75%.
“We think the relaxation of credit restrictions along with the expansionary budgetary policy will spur economic activity and stabilize inflation, which will enter the projected range in the first half of 2015,” Javadyan said.

He said that in 2015 the government will continue its economic policy, focusing the governmental mediation on effective redistribution of resources and stable economic growth.

“Inflation rate that is low now will rise in the second half of this year coming close to the bottom benchmark of the projected fluctuation range and in the beginning of the next year it will enter the projected range 4% (±1.5%),” the head of the central bank said.

In the 2015 draft budget, an average inflation is projected at 4%.
The year-on-year inflation is expected to stand at 2.6% in 2014, and an average inflation at 2.7%. ----0----