Price growth slows down in Belarus
2011-06-29 12:55:37
The price growth has decelerated in Belarus, Economy Minister of Belarus Nikolai Snopkov told a press conference on 29 June, BelTA has learnt.
“The growth in prices is slowing down. The consumer price index in H1 made up 33-34%. In June, the inflation has decelerated compared with May,” the minister said.
Nikolai Snopkov noted that in the six months period of 2011 the GDP growth is projected to slow down to 11%, which is 1.5 percentage points less than in January-May 2010. “It is related to the government efforts to decrease the domestic demand,” he explained.
According to the Economy Minister, the economic growth in Belarus is now accompanied with some deterioration of quality indicators. “The labor efficiency growth in H1 is expected to make 10.7%, 1.3 percentage points less than over the five months,” the Economy Minister said. The energy intensity of GDP is expected to fall by 7-8%. The industrial output is projected to grow by 10.5-10.7%. “The agricultural production is expected to expand by about 3%, while the profitability of sales is to shrink by up to 2%,” Nikolai Snopkov said. He explained that it is attributed to the seasonal decrease in production output and higher prices for imported protein feed.
Positive trends in foreign trade in goods and services remained in place throughout H1 2011, the minister underlined. The growth in the trade deficit decelerated sharply. In January-May, the deficit amounted to $3.9 billion.
“Over the five months of 2011, for the first time in several years, the export growth outpaced import growth by 4.5 percentage points,” the Economy Minister said. He noted that it has resulted from the government efforts to improve the economic situation.
However, the investment flow has lost momentum. “The capital investment growth reduced to 122-123%,” Nikolai Snopkov said. “It is attributed to the government policy to balance the domestic demand and curb credit expansion for government programs,” the minister said.
The consumer market is expected to maintain momentum. “The increase in retail trade is estimated at 20-21%”, Nikolai Snopkov concluded.