VACCINATION IN GEORGIA
• As of February 1, a total of 2,722.187 vaccine doses had been administered in Georgia
• As of January 31, 30.5% of Georgian population had been fully vaccinated, and 36.8% was at least partially vaccinated
ECONOMIC GROWTH: PERFORMANCE IN Q3 2021
• In Q3 2021, electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply recorded impressive 62.8% growth compared to Q3 2019
• In Q3 2021, administrative and support services and construction performed the worst, recording a decline of 37.4% and 34.6% respectively when compared to Q3 2019
ECONOMIC GROWTH: FORECASTS FOR 2022
• PMC Research Center predicts that the revised growth rate of the Georgian economy in 2021 will amount to 11.3%, and to 5.6% in 2022
• In the optimistic scenario, which envisions higher vaccination rates and a lower likelihood of lockdowns, the economy is expected to grow by 6.3% in 2022
• In the pessimistic scenario, which envisions lower vaccination rates and a higher chance of lockdowns, and a possible escalation of the Russia-Ukrainian conflict, economy is predicted to grow by 4.1% in 2022
GEORGIAN ECONOMIC CLIMATE
• In Q4 2021, the surveyed economists gave a positive assessment of the economic climate in the country for the first time since the start of the pandemic
BAG INDEX: GEORGIAN BUSINESS CLIMATE
• In Q4 2021, the surveyed businesses delivered positive assessments for both the current situation and with respect to their expectations for the next quarter
• Across sectors, the construction sector fared worst on both indicators, while the manufacturing sector returned the best scores on the present business situation indicator and the trade sector returned the best scores on the business expectations indicator
STATE BUDGET 2022: TAX REVENUES
• In total, the planned tax revenues for the Georgian state budget of 2022 amount to 13.4 billion GEL, which is 17.3% higher than in 2021
• Planned tax revenues for 2022 are higher mainly due to higher planned revenues from income tax and profit tax, which are expected to increase by 808 million GEL and 605 million GEL respectively, compared to 2021
• The highest percentage increase is envisioned for revenues from profit tax, which is expected to be 59.6% higher than in 2021
STATE BUDGET 2022: EXPENDITURES
• In total, Georgian state budget expenditures in 2022 are to be increased by 2.4% compared to 2021, by 15.4% compared to 2020 and by 41.3% compared to 2019
• Expenditures on economic activity are expected to increase by 26.2% in 2022, while expenses on healthcare will decrease by 26.7% compared to 2021
• Expenditures on social security, which have drastically increased in 2020 and 2021 (by 43.7% and 43.2% compared to 2019, respectively), will remain high in 2022 – 4.45 billion GEL, or 26.0% of total state budget expenditures)
KEY MACROECONOMIC INDICATORS: INFLATION
• In 2021, the average YoY monthly inflation amounted to 9.6%, with increased prices in the categories of “food and non-alcoholic beverages” and “transport and communications” contributing most of this increase (3.6 pp and 2.0 pp, respectively)
• Since the beginning of 2021, monthly YoY CPI inflation has been increasing sharply, surpassing pre-pandemic levels, and reaching its peak to date of 13.9% in December 2021 (representing a 11.1 pp increase from January 2021)
• To counteract this rise in inflation, the NBG increased its monetary policy rate several times throughout 2021, (rising from 8.0% in January to 10.5% in December)
• About one third of surveyed BAG member businesses in “trade”, “service” and “manufacturing” expect further price rises in Q1 2022, while the corresponding figure for surveyed businesses in construction was 50%
KEY MACROECONOMIC INDICATORS: EMPLOYMENT AND SALARIES
• Over the course of 2021, the share of persons receiving a salary of up to 600 GEL per month averaged 27%, while the share of persons receiving a salary of more than 2400 GEL averaged 15%
KEY MACROECONOMIC INDICATORS: VACANCIES
• In 2021, the number of published vacancies on jobs.ge increased by 77% compared to 2020 and by 20% compared to 2019
EXTERNAL SECTOR: TOURISM
• While international visits recovered slightly in 2021, it was only to a fraction of pre-pandemic levels
• Conversely, domestic visits exceeded pre-pandemic levels significantly in Q1-Q3 of 2021
EXTERNAL SECTOR: FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENTS
• In Q3 2021, total FDI inflows increased by 1.4% when compared to Q3 2020, and decreased by 25.9% when compared to Q3 2019
• In Q3 2021, the share of total FDI inflows into Georgia that were reinvested reached 98.1%
EXTERNAL SECTOR: REMITTANCES
• Remittance inflows increased by 23.6% to 2.3 billion USD in 2021 compared to 2019, and by 12.7% when compared to 2020
