Armenia to receive US $60 million from IMF

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has completed the second review of Armenia’s economic performance under a program supported by a Stand-By Arrangement (SBA), said in press-release published on IMF web-site.

IMF approved a request for a waiver of nonobservance of end-September 2009 fiscal balance performance criterion, modification of the quantitative performance criteria for end-December 2009 to reflect the revised macroeconomic framework and rephrasing of purchases to make the amounts scheduled to become available following the second and third review available upon completion of the second review. These decisions enable the immediate release of about $60 million, bringing the total disbursed to $479 million. The 28-month SBA was approved on March 6, 2009.

Following the Executive Board's discussion on Armenia, Mr. Takatoshi Kato, Deputy Managing Director and Acting Chair, stated: “The global crisis has continued to have a serious impact on the Armenian economy.”

“The short-term outlook remains challenging. As external conditions improve, growth is expected to resume gradually in 2010, although risks remain, including a slower recovery of the global economy. Continued reforms, particularly in the areas of tax policy and tax reform administration, the financial sector, and the business environment will be necessary to boost the medium-term growth potential of the economy,” Mr. Kato said.