Economy - overview:
Under the old Soviet central planning system, Armenia had developed a modern industrial sector, supplying machine tools, textiles, and other manufactured goods to sister republics in exchange for raw materials and energy. Since the implosion of the USSR in December 1991, Armenia has switched to small-scale agriculture away from the large agroindustrial complexes of the Soviet era. The agricultural sector has long-term needs for more investment and updated technology. The privatization of industry has been at a slower pace, but has been given renewed emphasis by the current administration. Armenia is a food importer, and its mineral deposits (copper, gold, bauxite) are small. The ongoing conflict with Azerbaijan over the ethnic Armenian-dominated region of Nagorno-Karabakh and the breakup of the centrally directed economic system of the former Soviet Union contributed to a severe economic decline in the early 1990s. By 1994, however, the Armenian Government had launched an ambitious IMF-sponsored economic liberalization program that resulted in positive growth rates in 1995-2003. Armenia joined the WTO in January 2003. Armenia also has managed to slash inflation, stabilize the local currency (the dram), and privatize most small- and medium-sized enterprises. The chronic energy shortages Armenia suffered in the early and mid-1990s have been offset by the energy supplied by one of its nuclear power plants at Metsamor. Armenia is now a net energy exporter, although it does not have sufficient generating capacity to replace Metsamor, which is under international pressure to close. The electricity distribution system was privatized in 2002. Armenia's severe trade imbalance has been offset somewhat by international aid and foreign direct investment. Economic ties with Russia remain close, especially in the energy sector.

Agriculture - Products
fruit (especially grapes), vegetables; livestock

Airlines
Airlines in Asia
Airlines Worldwide

Airports
Airports in Asia
Airports Worldwide

Country Budget
revenues: $428.1 million
expenditures: $491.2 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)

Currency (code)
dram (AMD)

Currency Exchange Rates
drams per US dollar - 533.45 (2004), 578.76 (2003), 573.35 (2002), 555.08 (2001), 539.53 (2000)

Fiscal Year
calendar year

GDP (Gross Domestic Product)
GDP (purchasing power parity): $13.65 billion (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 9% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $4,600 (2004 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 22.9%
industry: 36.1%
services: 41.1% (2004 est.)

Imports / Exports
Exports: $850 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Exports - commodities: diamonds, mineral products, foodstuffs, energy
Exports - partners: Belgium 18%, Israel 15.3%, Germany 13.3%, Russia 12.5%, US 8.1%, Netherlands 7.2%, Iran 5.5%, Georgia 4.3%, UAE 4% (2004)

Imports: $1.3 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities: natural gas, petroleum, tobacco products, foodstuffs, diamonds
Imports - partners: Russia 11.3%, Belgium 10.1%, Israel 8.4%, US 7.6%, Iran 7.1%, UAE 6.1%, Ukraine 5.9%, Italy 5.5%, Germany 5.2%, Georgia 4.6%, France 4.5% (2004)

Industries
diamond-processing, metal-cutting machine tools, forging-pressing machines, electric motors, tires, knitted wear, hosiery, shoes, silk fabric, chemicals, trucks, instruments, microelectronics, jewelry manufacturing, software development, food processing, brandy

Investing
Forex, Foreign Exchange Market: Currency Trading

Labor Force & Unemployment Rate
Labor force: 1.4 million (2001)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 45%, industry 25%, services 30% (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate: 30% (2003 est.)