Armenian Dram Continues to Depreciate

The newspaper "Zhoghovurd" reports that the Armenian dram continues to depreciate as foreign currency becomes more expensive. Over the past week, the selling price of the dollar has increased by at least 1.5 drams, the euro by 2 drams, and the Russian ruble by 1.27 drams.

Yesterday, the American dollar could be purchased at a minimum of 527 drams in banks, the price of the euro was above 648, and the established minimum exchange rate for the Russian ruble was 7.27. At the beginning of November, just before the end of the war, one could buy the dollar for 495 drams. Thus, during this post-war period, the dollar has increased in price by at least 32 drams, approximately 6.47 percent.

The economic community attributed the sharp increase in the dollar's price to a lack of expectations for the future among citizens, who converted their savings into dollars. In December, several food products saw price increases in stores, with economists citing the depreciation of the dram as one of the reasons.

The Central Bank announced a one percent increase in the refinancing rate, setting it at 5.25 percent, which means that funds are borrowed from the Central Bank at a higher price. This increase in the interest rate is a tool for mitigating inflation rates.

Inflation trends are expected to continue into 2021. The government also emphasizes that the recorded inflation has been lower than that in regional countries such as Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Georgia, Turkey, and Iran.

For more details, refer to today's issue of the newspaper.