In March 2018, the average cost of cooking one standard Imeretian khachapuri declined to 3.55 GEL, which is 3.2% lower month-on-month (that is compared to February 2018), and 4.2% higher year-on-year (compared to March 2017).

Geostat has revised its rapid estimate of real GDP growth for the fourth quarter of 2017. Estimated growth now stands at 5.4%, which is 0.7 percentage points above the previously estimated average growth rate for Q4. As a result, the real GDP growth for 2017 reached 5.0%.

Consultants from ISET Policy Institute will assist the team from Research Education Development (RED) Fund working on spatial development plan of Telavi, in socio-economic analysis.

In January 2018, an IMF Working Paper published new results on the shadow economy situation for 158 countries from 1991 to 2015. According to Medina and Schneider (2018), the shadow economy in Georgia during that period constituted, on average, 64.9% of GDP – the highest indicator in the world! In 2015 (the last year available), things were slightly better for Georgia, with the share of the shadow economy standing at 53%.

The average cost of cooking one standard Imeretian khachapuri in the second month of 2018 dropped to 3.67 GEL, which is 1.2% lower month-on-month (compared to January 2018), and only 0.3% higher year-on-year (compared to February 2017).