BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb. 22
By Tamilla Mammadova – Trend:
The number of money transfers to Georgia was 26 percent up from the EU in January, while 11 percent down – from Russia, said Aleqsandre Bluashvili, Head of Research at TBC Capital declares, Trend reports via Georgian media.
According to Bluashvili, Italy was in the first place in terms of remittances in January. According to him, 41 percent of total remittances accounted for the EU last year, while Russia's share was reduced to 19 percent.
During the economic review, the head of research at TBC Capital also commented on preliminary data of trade balance.
"According to the preliminary data of the trade balance, the exports were 16.2 percent down, while the imports - by 16.4 percent. However, imports improved by a total of about $60 million at the expense of the trade balance due to the fact that foreign demand was weak and tourism was near zero in January. Consequently, the decrease in demand was followed by a decrease in imports," said Bluashvili.
Bluashvili also explained that January was a bad month in terms of mortgage lending.
"In January, mortgage lending was 35 percent down. However, the first signs in February are relatively better. The declining trend in mortgage lending is still maintained, although the relatively small, decline of 15 percent was noted in the first half of February," explained Bluashvili.
The government of Georgia suspended the mortgage subsidy program early in 2021 and as a result mortgage subsidy dropped sharply.
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