YEREVAN, OCTOBER 7, ARMENPRESS: Armenian-European Policy and Legal Advice Center (AEPLAC) has released a short report “Armenia’s export growth in 2000-2002: origin and outlook”.
Kristina Tereshchatova, the author of the report, analyses the growth trend in Armenia’s exports during the last two years as well as the origin and prospects of these developments. The analysis focuses on the commodity composition of Armenia’s exports and problems accompanying its diversification, AEPLAC told Armenpress.
The report highlights, among other things, the direct link between a stronger inflow of FDI and a better export performance on the level of sectors and separate enterprises. Sectors which have profited from more FDI in the recent years, i.e. diamond processing, food processing, chemical industry, mining and metallurgy – notwithstanding the general slow-down in foreign investment inflow to Armenia since 1998 – have managed to position themselves better vis-a-vis foreign markets.
Armenia has only few commodity subgroups with a very good export potential, at least in the short run – diamonds and stones, preserved tomatoes, canned fruit, beer, alcoholic beverages and synthetic rubber. Prospects of expanding these exports are generally good. However, enterprises producing canned vegetable and fruit experience serious problems, which hamper stronger exposure to foreign markets. These are mostly the lack of quality and efficient marketing and weak cost control management. From this viewpoint, a more diversified exports structure is crucial for the sustainability of export growth.
Despite the rapid export growth, the country’s exposure to the European market remains very limited, and the situation may change only if Armenian exports, again, are diversified in the medium and long run. Finally, with the low commodity exports to GDP ratio of 16.2% in 2001, Armenia’s external sector remains small, so that even a minor change in a single commodity has serious implication for the general export performance.
Yorumlar kapatıldı.