More money leaves the country than comes in: Karapetyan to Finance Minister

Armenia has a balance of payments deficit, a gap. In simple terms, more money leaves the country than comes in from exports. How is this gap being covered? Narek Karapetyan, head of the Strong Armenia faction, put this question to Vahe Hovhannisyan, Minister of Finance, during the preliminary discussion of the draft 2027 state budget.

“The gap you are talking about, which has indeed widened compared to last year, is mainly due to significant growth in capital goods and intermediate goods. That is, we are importing, and the significant growth in our imports is driven by goods that increase our production capacity,” Hovhannisyan said in response to Karapetyan’s question.