According to the World Bank's monthly review, Armenia's economy demonstrated robust growth in September 2024, increasing by 7% compared to the same period last year. This marks a significant acceleration from the 5.6% growth recorded in August.
The most dynamic growth was observed in the construction sector (+14.7%), trade (+13.4%), and services excluding trade (+11.6%). Industrial production doubled its growth rate to 4.6%, compared to 2.1% in August.
“This was supported by improvements in light industry (+6.5%), electricity production (+9.4%), and water supply (+7.1%). Meanwhile, the mining sector continued to decline, shrinking by 5.6%,” the review stated.
For the first nine months of 2024, the economic activity index rose by 8.7% year-over-year. However, alongside economic growth, there has been a rise in unemployment, from 11.7% in Q2 2023 to 13.8% in Q2 2024.
The increase in unemployment is largely attributed to the influx of refugees, who are yet to integrate into the labor market. Urban unemployment has grown faster than rural unemployment. Notably, the economically active population increased by 2.3% during the 2022–2023 period.
