YEREVAN. – The participants in Armenia’s financial market are expecting a certain market distortion next month, according to Haykakan Zhamanak (Armenian Time) newspaper.

“These expectations are due to the amount of the election bribes to be distributed ahead of the upcoming parliamentary elections [to be conducted in the country on April 2].

“The problem is that the main part of the money intended for election bribes is kept in foreign currency, whereas the election bribe will be distributed in drams [i.e. the national currency of Armenia].

“This means that a sharp increase in the [US] dollar supply will be created in the market [of Armenia], in a very short period of time. This will coincide with the inflow of a large number of tourists from neighboring Iran, as of mid-March, on the occasion of the Nowruz [i.e. the Iranian New Year] holiday, when a dollar surplus usually arises [in Armenia].

“These two factors together may cause some market shocks [in the country], and bring about the dram’s gaining value for a short term,” wrote Haykakan Zhamanak.