YEREVAN, December 10. /ARKA/. Chairman of the Central Bank of Armenia (CBA) Artur Javadyan refuted at a press conference on Tuesday the alleged large-scale forex purchases by foreigners in the Armenian market.

According to rumors circulating in the society, foreign citizens tend to make large-scale purchases of greenback after the dollar versus dram rate surged sharply in the Armenian market.

“It is illogical disseminate such statements as there is no sense in bringing rubles into Armenia and buying dollars… It is an economically ignorant statement”, Javadyan said.

The head of the central bank said about seven months ago gradual currencies started falling at various markets, which had no effect on the Armenian dram though. The central bank had even to buy foreign currency to prevent dram strengthening, he said.

The situation was more or less stable in September, Javadyan said, despite some fluctuations, but “the Russian market shocks caused by OPEC’s statements about oil price led to panic”.

“What happened in Armenia with the currency rate is beyond any economic justification and is caused not by fundamental reasons, but shock phenomena, which have affected not only Armenia, but Georgia as well”, Javadyan said.

Dram started suffering a sharp fall after November 24 when the dram versus dollar rate jumped by 16.6 points to an eight-year-record-high 435 drams per $1. The rate was as high as 450 drams on December 8 and reached 455.08 drams per $1 yesterday. –0--