Azerbaijan’s economy to steadily grow with oil price at $60 per barrel, Aliyev says

Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 2

Trend:

The world oil price fall will indeed have a negative impact on Azerbaijan's plans, the country's President Ilham Aliyev said in an interview with Russia-24 TV channel of All-Russia State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company.

President Aliyev said Azerbaijani government has worked out various scenarios, so the country's economy will steadily grow even at the price of $60 per oil barrel. He did add that the drop in oil price will have a certain influence.

"Of course, these factors will have certain, rather than important, influence," the president said. "The only negative thing I see is that what we have planned to do in one year we will do within two years. We will just cut budget spending in the non-priority areas, infrastructure projects. It is good that we already implemented these projects in the previous years."

President Aliyev said that today, the country mainly focuses on the development of the non-oil sector.

"The country expects a three percent growth this year," the president said. "But when we always calculate GDP, we mainly pay attention to the non-oil sector. And the situation is better - we expect the growth rate of 6-7 percent there this year. It was ten percent in 2013."

The president said the country expects the growth of 6-10 percent in the non-oil sector of the economy in 2015.

"Today, the oil sector comprises about 45 percent of Azerbaijan's GDP, which is less than a half," he said. "Azerbaijan will strengthen these trends in 2015."

"Ideally, of course, we will strive for oil revenues to hit one-third of the country's GDP," the president said. "Then we will consider our diversification policy as successful. The country is on this way, because when we started these programs, the oil factor was almost 80 percent of GDP. At present, it is 45 percent."

Ilham Aliyev said that last year $28 billion was invested in the Azerbaijani economy, some 70 percent of them being the domestic investments.

The president added that Azerbaijan began to diversify investments a few years ago, and their geography covers Asia, Europe, Russia and the region.

"As for Russia, we've made investments in the banking sector, acquired VTB Bank's shares, as well as a real estate and production," he said.

"For us, the Russian market is promising, and we will continue to actively invest in it, no matter what the situation is, despite the so-called sanctions," he said. "Because, first of all, this all is temporary, and, secondly, we need to work to strengthen relations. After all, the investments are not just diversification of own assets, it is also a demonstration of relations and level of cooperation," the president added.

President Aliyev went on to add that no country will invest state funds where there is no stability and good relations.

"Therefore, for us Russia is a friend, partner, and the investments in Russia will continue. We also, of course, would like to see more investments from Russia to Azerbaijan," Ilham Aliyev said.

He added that Azerbaijan and Russia have traditional areas of cooperation, which include the power industry, and oil and gas sector.

President Aliyev noted that there is a good potential and an experience of cooperation in the power industry and transportation sector.

"Russia and Azerbaijan are interested in the North-South transport corridor to start functioning more actively," the Azerbaijani president said. "On our part, we are creating the necessary infrastructure - these are the sea ports, the reconstruction of a railway and a highway. It is the same on the Russian side."

The president further said there is, of course, a good potential for cooperation in selling the Azerbaijani agricultural products to the Russian markets.

"We are developing the export potential," President Aliyev said. "In fact, it was a strategic line of our government, but given the current situation and needs for our products on the Russian market, we purposefully began to increase exactly that assortment which Russian consumers need."

He said there are good prospects in the tourism sector.

"We are seeing an increasing number of tourists from Russia, who come to Azerbaijan," President Aliyev said.