The Georgian Business Confidence Index (BCI)* has increased slightly, reaching 28.0 index points, which is a 1.2 index points gain over the previous quarter. Against weakening expectations, the fourth quarter improvement in the BCI was mostly driven by a notable increase in the Past Performance Index.

ISET Policy Institute started working on the Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) on the selected topics under the Draft Law on Insolvency Proceedings. In this project, ISET is partnering with the Berlin Economist, the German consulting group.

Based on a report prepared by international auditors, DQS GmbH issued a three-year quality management Certificate of Conformity with ISO 9001:2015 standard requirements, which focus on improving business management and system performance.

Nikoloz M., 65, from the Imeretian village of Jikhaishi, invested around 15,000 GEL into his 8.5 ha hazelnut orchard in 2012, hoping that one day his initiative would turn into a profitable business. Nikoloz was on his way to success up until this year, before the stink bug, or Asian pharosana, as Georgians call it, appeared in his orchard. While Nikoloz expected to harvest 800 kg – 1000 kg of hazelnuts per ha, the stink bug infestation reduced his harvest by 30-35%, resulting in a loss of more than 1,000 GEL per ha.

ISET continues to challenge its BA students to think about economics and apply knowledge gained during their studies in everyday life. On October 19, 2017, Eric Livny, President of ISET and BA Program Director, conducted a very intriguing discussion on how to start a business in Georgia and what factors one has to initially take into account.