In May 2024, economic activity in Armenia grew by 5.2% compared to the same month last year, which is more than twice as low as the growth rates exceeding 10% at the beginning of the year, according to the Statistical Committee.
The main sectors contributing to the economic activity growth in May 2024 compared to May 2023 were construction with a growth of 18.1%, trade - 17.6%, industry - 6.9%, and services - 2.8%.
However, growth in the industry sector has significantly slowed, especially in the manufacturing sector, which previously saw double-digit growth mainly due to the re-export of Russian gold. These data indicate that the sector is experiencing a "cooling" phase after a six-month period of excessive growth, which many economists have termed a "gold rush."
Foreign trade turnover in May 2024 increased by 32.2% compared to May 2023, with exports growing by 57.4% and imports by 17.2%.
Despite the slowdown in economic dynamics in May, economic activity in January-May 2024 grew by 11.2% compared to the same period last year, thanks to high rates in the previous months. During this period, trade turnover increased by 24.6%, industry by 22%, construction by 14.9%, and the services sector by 3.7%.
In January-May 2024, foreign trade turnover increased 2.2 times, reaching $16.3 billion. Exports increased 2.5 times, amounting to over $7 billion, while imports grew by 99.6%, reaching $9.2 billion.
In May, inflation was 0.3%, and for January-May, consumer prices fell by 0.8%.
