According to the preliminary data, in the first three quarters of 2015, the volume of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), an important source of economic growth, amounted to US$1019.0 mln in Georgia. In this period, the largest investors by country were Azerbaijan (38.5%), Netherlands (14.2%) and Turkey (10.8%). The highest proportion of FDI was in the transport and communications sector (56.1%), while the most attractive location for investors was still Tbilisi (78.0%).  

The current publication of newsletter gives an overview of four important New Year products, such as walnut, honey, pork and cheese. According to the diffused opinion, the prices of almost every product increases during the New Year time. However, the overall price level declined (-0.6%) in December 2015, compared to November, the same year. The prices have been declined on walnut (-4.7%), honey (-2.8%), pork (-0.7%) and on cheese (-1.0%).In December 2015, compared to corresponding period in 2014, the overall price level increased (4.9%). In this period, prices on walnut (-2.8%), pork (-1.7%) and on cheese (-3.5%) declined, while the price on honey increased (3.8%).  

According to the preliminary data of 2015, state budget revenues as well as state budget expenditures will be complied. Specifically, state budget revenues are expected to be executed by 101.4%, while budget expenditures will reach 99.5% of the planned level. In 2015, compared to the previous year, spending from the state budget was more balanced which reduced the negative effect of the fiscal policy on exchange rate and inflation in the fourth quarter.  

In the first three quarters of 2015, the share of construction sector in GDP is 6.9%. In this period, compared to the same period in 2014, the volume of construction output, as well as its turnover increased respectively by 22.5% and 30.8%.The volume of loans to this sector increased also (35.8%). In the first three quarters of 2015, the volume of FDI in construction sector declined by 47.5% compared to the corresponding indicator of the previous year.

In October 2015, considering the effect of foreign exchange rate, the volume of deposits increased by 5.9%, while the volume of loans to the national economy increased by 10.9% compared to the corresponding periods in 2014. For the period of January-October 2015, the key indicators, which determine the financial sustainability of the commercial banks, are stable.

In the first three quarters of 2015, compared to the indicator of 2014, the external public debt declined by 0.1%, while the corresponding indicator in GEL increased (27.7%), this is attributable to changes in the exchange rate. Hence, the public debt increased by 25.5%. Compared to 2014, the indicator of domestic debt also increased by 16.5%. In this period, the Government of Georgia’s three largest multilateral creditors were: International Development Association (IDA) - 41.7%; International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) - 20.9%; and Asian Development Bank (ADB) - 16.4%. The largest bilateral creditors are Germany (38.1%), Japan (22.2%) and Russia (12.3%).

During the first three quarters of 2015, the tax revenues of the state budget increased by 11.2% compared to the corresponding indicator of 2014. In this period, 75.8% of the planned annual tax revenue for state budget has been realized. The structure of state budget tax revenues has remained similar to the corresponding indicator in 2015. The revenues so far are composed as follows: value added tax (VAT) - 46.1%; income tax - 26.2%; profit tax - 15.3%; excise tax - 11.2%; and import tax - 0.9%. Compared with the same period in the previous year, the revenues increased for VAT (6.7%), profit (30.0%), income (15.1%) and excise (5.5%) taxes, while it declined for import tax (-30.2%).

During the first three quarters of 2015, the share of trade turnover between Georgia and EU member countries in Georgia’s total trade turnover is 31.7%, which exceeds (5.6% point) the same indicator in 2014. In this period, the share of export to EU member countries in total export is 28.6% and the share of import from EU member countries in Georgia’s total import is 32.6% . In this period, the export from Georgia to EU countries as well as the import from EU member countries to Georgia increased by 2.1% and 6.8%, respectively.

During the first half of 2015, the real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Georgia increased by 2.8% (208.2 mln GEL) compared to the corresponding period in 2014. In this period, the volume of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), an important source of long-term economic growth, in Georgia amounted to US$530 mln.

The growing number of visitors (tourists, one-day visits, and transit) to Georgia is important for the further development of the country’s tourism sector, as well as for increasing the inflow of foreign currency. In January-August 2015, 3 922 376 international arrivals were registered in Georgia. This indicator exceeds the corresponding indicator for the same period in 2014 by 5.9%. During previous years, July-September has been the busiest period in this regard. A similar tendency is visible in 2015, as 40.5% of international arrivals have been registered in the period of July-August and with September’s statistics still to be added, this figure is likely to mirror the pattern of previous years.