Yerevan /Mediamax/. Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsian stated that Armenia should preserve financial stability, as well as use all the possible levers to stimulate development of national economy and export.

Mediamax reports that the Prime Minister said this, answering the questions of “Golos Armenii” newspaper’s “hotline”.

Tigran Sargsian noted that Armenia has not been much influenced by the global economic crisis yet.

“We should preserve macroeconomic stability - all macroeconomic parameters should be under the strict control of the state. This will secure stability for investors. Simultaneously, one should preserve financial stability, as well as use all the possible levers to stimulate the development of national economy and export. From this point of view we should carry out a very well-considered policy, including the one on interest rates. From the one hand, the government should follow the balance of payments, on the other – the potential national produce and other macroindices. Taking into account the fact that in the recent month the inflationary risks have been reducing, Armenia has started importing greater volumes of goods and services. The decrease of prices for those allows the Central Bank of Armenia once again taking up the policy of interest rates. Taking into account the fact that in the course of the recent month we have registered reduction of growth rates of the gross national produce, the policy of interest rates in the nearest future may be changed towards decrease. And this should be done in a well-considered and non-stereotyped manner”, Tigran Sargsian stated. 

Answering the question on how the government plans to support the solvency of the population in conditions of private transfers reduction from abroad, Tigran Sargsian stated:

“The engine, which will be supporting the population solvency, is the social programs, included in the budget of 2009. In future, the expenses for the social sphere will undergo abrupt increase. We also intend to significantly increase the volumes of small and medium enterprise crediting. We hope that we will manage to attract about $250mln for those purposes”.

The Prime Minister also stressed that “one of the main components of our crisis prevention program will be collective consultation”.

“We will constantly realize consultations with world financial and public organizations, business-circles. All this should be covered in the media in a correct way for the people to have clear, trustworthy information and to make correct decisions”, Tigran Sargsian stated.

Answering the question on how the global financial-economic will influence the plans of the Armenian government on turning the country into the regional financial center, the Prime Minister stated:

“We are witnesses of a new world order formation, formation of new anthology of postindustrial society. We will witness abrupt, strong, qualitative changes. And this is an opportunity, which we should use. After the crisis, the countries, which correctly get oriented in conditions of these changes and which form a correct landscape and architecture, will be in pocket. We hope that we will manage to use those opportunities and form a regional financial center”.