Yerevan/Mediamax/. Head of Trade and Market Regulation Department of the Armenian Ministry of Economy Gagik Kocharian believes that at the moment inflation in Armenia is not conditioned by price speculations of local companies.

In an interview to Mediamax, Gagik Kocharian expressed an opinion that inflationary pressures are mainly of external nature, and the relative restraint of Armenian managing subjects may be conditioned by psychological influence from establishment of the maximum price for first necessity goods in early March by the government.

Commenting on the fact that the draft laws on establishing the maximum prices for first necessity goods, presented by the government, have not yet entered the agenda of the parliament, and it is not clear when this will happen (while the government was stating their temporary nature), Gagik Kocharian said that not the law will be temporary, but the period of establishment of the maximum price, consequently, according to the official, there is no issue of the urgency for approving the corresponding laws.

Answering the question why the authors of draft laws have not established the maximum two-month price niche exactly in case of 30% fluctuation of prices and in the course of 30 days, Gagik Kocharian said that the Ministry was basing on the analogous Russian draft law, and during discussions in the parliament some changes can be made.

Gagik Kocharian also commented on the prospect of the influence of the temporary ban for petrol export from Russia on Armenia. “I do not think that this fact will influence the domestic market of Armenia, since we import only 17% of our products from Russia”, he said.