After several months of incremental improvements, Consumer Confidence Index dropped 4.1 points in August 2015, to reach a new historical minimum of -38.4 points. Interestingly, this entire drop was driven by older respondents (aged over 35).

The objective of this activity is to design, develop and implement an operational the Georgian Reform Progress Tracking System (GRPTS) that informs grant beneficiaries on how new reform efforts of the Georgian government have progressed against their intended objectives and continue to improve development outcomes.

On August 16-22, 2015 the head of ISET-PI's Agricultural Policy Research Center (APRC), Pati Mamardashvili participated in a study tour in Switzerland, organized by the Market Opportunities for Livelihood Improvement in Kakheti (MOLI) project. Local government and private sector representatives from Kakheti were invited on the tour.

Oil prices have endured a large and persistent decrease due to increased worldwide production and the weakness of global demand. Prices are soon expected to stabilize around USD 60/barrel. ISET-PI and GET have focused on the improved terms of trade that Georgia could potentially see due to its high share of energy imports compared to its GDP indicators.

For resilient economic development in Georgia, the country should encourage exports of higher-value added goods. In this report, ISET-PI and GET have found that Georgia might be able to develop a comparative advantage when it comes to exporting higher-value energy-intensive products. According to projections of its electricity network operator, Georgia will develop excess capacities of low-cost electricity in the next decade.