YEREVAN, December 8. / ARKA /. The level of dollarization of the Armenian economy will reduce if the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) shifts to a single currency, according to Aharon Adibekyan, the head of the Yerevan-based Sociometer polling center.
“If the (Russian) ruble becomes the single currency for the EEU that will allow all EEU member countries, including Armenia, to come off the USD needle,” said Adibekyan.
According to him, if that happens that will result in some economic consequences, in particular, Armenia will have to comply with all the changes related to the Russian currency. He noted, however that unlike the Russian ruble that has lost 50% of its value against the USD in recent weeks, the Armenian Dram has depreciated by 10-12% only.
An economist Vilen Khachatryan, who also spoke at the conference, disagreed with Adibekyan saying the introduction of the Russian ruble as a single currency for the EEU will give Russia a string of advantages.
Speaking at a news conference in Yerevan on December 5, Tatiana Valovaya, a senior official of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC), the executive body of the EEU, said there were no conditions for a discussion on the introduction of a single currency for the EEU.
According to the Central Bank of Armenia, 58.6 percent of resident deposits in Armenia as of October 1 were kept in the US currency, while 62.3 percent of granted loans were also in US Dollar. ($1 – 447.86 drams).-0-
