03
June
2015
According to Geostat’s rapid estimates, Georgia’s economy grew by 4.3% in March 2015. After the slowdown of the last several months, the growth rate in February and March looks very promising. In the first quarter of 2015, GDP growth amounted to 3.2%. In March, VAT payers’ turnover increased by 9.9% annually, and the total consumption of electricity increased by 6.2%.
01
June
2015
Most development practitioners subscribe to the view that vibrant small-and-medium enterprises (SMEs) are crucial for the health of a country’s economy. The SME sector is crucial, the argument goes because it creates employment and serves as a hotbed of entrepreneurial talent. Additionally, SMEs are often seen as a source of new, fast-growing industries, contributing to a price-reducing and quality-improving competition with large and old firms that tend to dominate markets in small countries such as Georgia.
11
May
2015
The growth forecast for the 1st quarter of 2014 has been revised upward from 0.5% to 2.3%. The growth forecast for the 2nd quarter of 2014 has also revised upward from 1.6% to 4.3%. Meanwhile, Geostat has updated the GDP growth estimate for February 2015, it stands at 4.9%.
08
May
2015
The growth forecast for the 1st quarter of 2014 has been revised downward from 3.6% to 0.5%. The growth forecast for the 2nd quarter of 2014 has been targeted at a low 1.6%. Meanwhile, Geostat has updated the GDP growth estimate for January 2015, and similarly to our forecast, it stands at 0.5%.
04
May
2015
Currently, farming in Georgia is a “by default activity” – the vast majority of Georgian “farmers” are not really farmers in a professional sense but rather people who try to survive by growing agricultural products. When traveling through Georgia’s countryside, one sees immediately that it is mainly the older generation which has to resort to this default activity.
