Economic Press Monitor October 20 - 26, 2019	Days:  12 19 26 02 09

economic & politics

NETGAZETI.GE: “BEKA LILUASHVILI APPOINTED AS GAKHARIA’S ADVISER IN ECONOMIC ISSUES”

October 25, 2019 - Beka Liluashvili is appointed as adviser in economic issues of Georgia’s Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia, Netgazeti.Ge reports.

The article indicates that Liluashvili in various time worked in both private business and state departments.




NETGAZETI.GE: ““LELO” DEMANDS TO WITHDRAW AND PUBLISH 3-YEARS-OLD TRANSACTIONS OF “PROGRESS BANK””

October 24, 2019 - Public movement Lelo (being founded recently by Mamuka Khazaradze, founder of Georgia’s largest TBC Bank) demands to launch legal investigation on Progress Bank and to publish 3-years-old transaction from archives of National Bank of Georgia (NBG), Netgazeti.Ge reports.

Regarding statement of NBG that Progress Bank is annulled and check of its documentation is impossible, Lelo indicates that Georgian Prosecutor’s Office studies not only 11-years-old transactions of TBC Bank, but also its activity, held 12 years ago.




BANKEBI DA FINANSEBI: “TURNAVA – OUR MODEL OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IS FOCUSED ON DEVELOPMENT OF GEORGIAN PRODUCTION”

October 22, 2019 - “Recent period’s dynamics and statistics testify the fact that we do everything in order that export grew”, Georgia’s Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development Natia Turnava declared. In particular, statistics for 9 months shows that export has increased year-on-year by 11%, while import decreased, she specified.




NETGAZETI.GE: “WE WILL NOT CREATE COALITION WITH FORCES, WHICH DO NOT INCLINE TO GOOD ECONOMIC RELATIONS WITH RUSSIA – KOBULIA”

October 21, 2019 - “If there is a demand for politicians like me, I will come to politics”, Georgia’s ex-minister of economy and sustainable development Giorgi Kobulia declared on air of Mtavari Arkhi (Main Channel) and added that “the matter concerns new party”.

According to Kobulia, he does not exclude coalition with both Bidzina Ivanishvili (billionaire leader of ruling Georgian Dream, ex-prime minister) and Mikheil Saakashvili (one of leaders of opposition National Movement, ex-president), Netgazeti.Ge reports.




NETGAZETI.GE: “MAYBE, THEY HAVE THE GRACE NOT TO ENTER AN ARBITRATION LAWSUIT – TSKITISHVILI ON “ANAKLIA CONSORTIUM””

October 21, 2019 - Georgia’s Minister of Regional Development and Infrastructure Maya Tskitishvili does not exclude a lawsuit with Anaklia Development Consortium (builds deep-water port in Anaklia) in case, if the state terminates agreement with the company.

Tskitishvili declared this on air of PalitraNews, replying to a question on possible lawsuit, Netgazeti.Ge reports.




BANKEBI DA FINANSEBI: “TURKEY’S ECONOMY IS LOADED BY SANCTIONS – HOW CRISIS IN THE NEIGHBORING COUNTRY WILL AFFECT GEORGIA”

October 21, 2019 - Bachana Jincharadze, analyst at Georgian Young Financiers and Businessmen Association, reviews in the article possible results of imposition of economic sanctions against Turkey.

Main impact will be seen in import and tourist visits, Jincharadze considers.

macroeconomics & budget

BANKEBI DA FINANSEBI: “STATE-OWNED “PRESERVED” PROPERTY – PROCESS OF PRIVATIZATION MOVES “AT A SNAIL’S PACE””

October 25, 2019 - Acceleration of privatization paces is on the agenda again, the newspaper notes. Georgia’s Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia assigned the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development to alienate state objects in accelerated pace, the article points.




REZONANSI: “LARI STARTED STRENGTHENING, BUT THERE WILL BE NO NOTABLE RESULT UNTIL JANUARY”

October 25, 2019 - After sharp actions of National Bank of Georgia (toughening of monetary policy), lari has started toughening, the newspaper writes. The article refers to experts, who consider that stable strengthening of the rate should be expected after January 2020.




REZONANSI: “ECONOMIC GROWTH IS SACRIFICED TO STRENGTHENING OF LARI, HOWEVER EVEN THIS COULDN’T BE MANAGED SO FAR”

October 24, 2019 - On October 23, National Bank of Georgia (NBG) raised the monetary policy rate (the refinancing rate) by 1 percentage point, up to 8.5%.

This is already the third change during one and a half month, during which period the total increase made up 2%, being explained by pressure of lari exchange rate upon inflationary process and need of its ease, the newspaper says.




TABULA: “FROM 20M LARI, ALLOCATED FOR BUSINESS ASSISTANCE, ZERO TETRI IS USED”

October 24, 2019 - Credit-and-guarantee fund was launched within Produce in Georgia Agency during Dimitri Kumsishvili’s stay in the office of Georgian Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development, being intended for co-financing of up to 70% of guaranty, required for receiving of banking credits by small and medium enterprises.

However, not a single credit guarantee is issued so far and from allocated 20 million lari, zero is used for 10 months of this year, Tabula reports.




REZONANSI: “ESTONIAN MODEL ATE ITS HEAD – BUSINESS ABSTAINED FROM REINVESTMENT”

October 22, 2019 - Within so-called “Estonian model” (exemption of profit from taxation in case of reinvestment), enacted in Georgia on January 1, 2017, only up to 100 million lari were reinvested until end of the year, the newspaper reports. Moreover, in the next 2 years, instead of growth, reinvestment decreased gradually even more and now makes up about 20 million lari.




BANKEBI DA FINANSEBI: “WHY INVESTMENTS ARE REDUCED”

October 22, 2019 - Paata Bayrakhtari, vice-president of Georgian Young Financiers and Businessmen Association, indicates that in recent few years, investments in Georgia are reducing irreversibly.

Sakstat explains sharp reduction of investments with such factors, as completion of the project on construction of South Caucasus gas pipeline, reduction of liabilities to non-resident direct investors (payment of credit indebtedness) and reduction of reinvestment.

energy, oil & gas

NETGAZETI.GE: “IF WE ARE AGAINST LOCAL HYDROELECTRIC STATIONS, ELECTRIC POWER WILL RISE IN PRICE – NARMANIA”

October 23, 2019 - “If we are against local hydroelectric stations, electric power in this case will surely rise in price”, declares David Narmania, new chairman of Georgian National Energy and Water Supply Regulating Commission. “Bigger volume of currency will outflow abroad that will negatively affect the rate”, he specifies.

conflict and court

NETGAZETI.GE: “AFTER SHARES, COURT SEIZED PROPERTY OF “R2” TOO – WHAT TV CHANNEL PLANS”

October 22, 2019 - Paata Salia, director general of Rustavi-2 (R2), confirms that Tbilisi city court has seized property of TV channel in October. The reason was debt of $2 million to the European Broadcasting Union.

companies

FORBES GEORGIA: “BY MEANS OF “TBC CAPITAL”, JSC “NIKORA” PLACED BONDS OF 28M LARI”

October 23, 2019 - JSC Nikora (food products) publicly placed bonds of 28 million lari, the magazine reports. The bonds, which placement was carried out by means of TBC Capital, are listed at Georgian Stock Exchange.




BANKEBI DA FINANSEBI: “THE GOVERNMENT PERMITTED DUTCH COMPANY TO JOIN ANAKLIA PORT PROJECT”

October 23, 2019 - Dutch company Van Oord acquired share of 4% in Anaklia Development Consortium for $5 million, the newspaper reports with reference to InterPressNews.

As the article notes, Georgian Ministry of Regional Development and Infrastructure confirmed that the government permitted sale of shares by the Consortium.




FORBES GEORGIA: “RATING OF GEORGIA’S AUDITOR COMPANIES”

October 21, 2019 - According to indicators for 2018, Georgia’s most profitable auditor companies are PWC Georgia, EY, KPMG Georgia, Deloitte&Touche and BDO.

As the article notes, the rating is prepared by Ebit Group on the basis of reports, published by the companies on reportal.ge.

finances & banking

TABULA: “GVENETADZE: IF THERE IS EXCESSIVE BUREAUCRACY IN BANKING REGULATION, WE WANT TO SIMPLIFY IN THIS TERM”

October 24, 2019 - Koba Gvenetadze, president of National Bank of Georgia (NBG), speaks about simplification of banking regulations, enacted in Georgia this year, Tabula reports.

Gvenetadze says that they want to simplify these regulations so that “basic principle was observed”.

agriculture & food

FORBES GEORGIA: “GEORGIAN AGRICULTURE IS PART OF STATE SOCIAL POLICY”

October 23, 2019 - Despite ideal natural resources (fertile soil, water, climate), realization of Georgia’s agricultural potential fails, state authors of the article (Revaz Vashakidze, investor of LLC Chirina (meat products), and Avtandil Gogol, founder of Capital Locus).

As they indicate, food production in small farms is the only way of household maintenance, however that is not the way of creation of competitive, import-substituting and having exporting potential agricultural products.

tourism

BANKEBI DA FINANSEBI: “IN GEORGIA, EXPENSES OF TRAVELERS FROM THE EU FOR THE FIRST TIME EXCEEDED EXPENSES OF RUSSIAN TOURISTS”

October 25, 2019 - Koba Gvenetadze, president of National Bank of Georgia, declared that against the background of Russian ban on air communication with Georgia, “income from international travelers predictably decreased in July-September”.

At the same time, Gvenetadze indicated importance of the fact that “tourists’ flow became more diversified in terms of countries”.