YEREVAN. - Trade in national currencies between Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) states will allow saving transaction costs, Suren Karayan, First Deputy Minister of the International Economic Integration and Reforms told Armenian News – NEWS.am.  

During the meeting of the EAEU Intergovernmental Council in Grodno city of Belarus on Thursday, Armenia’s PM Hovik Abrahamyan stated about the desirability of intensifying the mutual estimates in national currency and reducing dollarization in the mutual trade of strategic goods.

According to Karayan, these goods will include actually strategic products: firstly, energy carriers, and then, perhaps, wheat and other goods. In this case, for instance, Russian gas price for Armenia will be determined by rubles, without being bound to dollar.

The national currency can also be used in the trade of goods, whose price is formed within the scope of one of the EAEU states, Karayan said.

For instance, in case of export from Armenia to Kazakhstan, the price of goods will be expressed in Armenian drams directly converted to Tenge, without considering dollar.  Conversely, Kazakhstan will export to Armenia converting Tenge to Armenian dram.

This will allow avoiding transaction costs, as well as risks of loss from dollar fluctuations.

Karayan mentioned that the aforementioned policy has nothing to do with the plans of a common EAEU currency, since the trade development in national currencies is not now connected with the alignment of monetary and credit policy.  

“This is merely an agreed application of national currencies in mutual trade with the view of reducing costs,” he said.