Transfers are getting smaller, relocators are leaving: Armenia is emerging from economic euphoria

A decrease in the volume of money transfers to Armenia can significantly affect the state of the country's economy. Economist Lilia Amirkhanyan from the Hayatsk analytical center warned about this in an interview with Sputnik Armenia published today, July 11.

"Over the past two years, we have seen an increase in private money transfers, which was mainly due to the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and its consequences. However, it was clear that the external factors that had a shock effect on our economy would begin to weaken over time," the agency interlocutor noted.

According to official statistics, the volume of money transfers through banks to Armenia has significantly decreased. In the period from January to May 2023, $ 2.48 billion was transferred, and in the same period of 2024 — $ 2.088 billion.

Amirkhanyan explained that this is mainly due to a more than 20% decline in transfers from Of Russia. At the same time, transfers from the United States increased by 11%, and from the United Arab Emirates by 7%. Nevertheless, the volume of transfers from the United States is still significantly inferior to Russian ones.

The economist noted that the decrease in transfers reflects the general weakening of all external factors affecting the Armenian economy since 2022, which includes a reduction in tourist traffic, restrictions on the use of Russian Mir cards and the outflow of relocants.

"To understand how much each factor affects the overall picture, it is necessary to conduct a detailed study. However, the cumulative impact of these factors is already noticeable and will continue," Amirkhanyan stated.

According to the expert, the weakening of external factors supporting the Armenian economy will most significantly affect sectors such as trade, construction and services. Thus, in the previous two years, double-digit growth was recorded in the service sector of the Transcaucasian Republic, and in May of this year it amounted to only 2.8% year-on-year.

The decision of Armenian banks to stop servicing Mir cards may have a negative impact on the economy of the republic, local experts warned earlier.