YEREVAN. – Ever since the end of last December, there is a sharp increase, in Armenia’s financial market, in the demand for US dollar loans. Starting from December 26, the banks provided an average of approximately $105-million loans, per week, which surpasses last year’s indicator virtually twice. And the primary reason for this is the expectation that the Armenian dram will devalue.   

But the volume of Armenian-dram loans is also on the rise, with an equivalent of close to $90 million, per week. And this is a result of more economic activity towards the New Year and the reduction in loan interest rates.  

The volume of foreign currency trading in Armenia’s financial market is on a high level, too. In the last week of December, for example, the banks purchased $138 million and sold $166 million, which is an unprecedented indicator. And in the first ten days of January, they purchased $85 million and sold $115 million.