BAKU, Azerbaijan, December 12
By Tamilla Mammadova – Trend:
If the current lari exchange rate is to be maintained in Georgia till February 2020, importers will review prices, said Iva Chkonia, head of the Association of Georgian Importers, Trend reports referring to Georgian media.
According to Chkonia, the majority of importers have rather large stocks of products purchased during the period when the lari was depreciating, and the current strengthening is not enough to make products cheaper in the short term.
“Prices in Georgia will not go down. At the moment, the lari is not strengthening, but stabilizing. In recent months, there have been no investments in the Georgian economy, there have been no major projects, in short, nothing that could strengthen the lari and, consequently, lead to decrease in prices,” he said.
Companies manage to limit the price increase by reducing the profit margin; for example, if someone used to have a profit of 20 percent, now it is 13 percent, Chkonia added.
“In any case, currency stability is good. The National Bank is taking emergency measures. In particular, foreign exchange interventions totaling $150 million were carried out, the refinancing rate was increased to 9 percent. Of course, this cannot pass without a trace,” said the head of the Association of Importers.
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