Lebanon, Russia And Argentina Make Biggest Investments In Armenian Economy’s Real Sector In January-June 2007
Lebanon, Russia And Argentina Make Biggest Investments In Armenian Economy’s Real Sector In January-June 2007
5 September 2007
Prime-News Business Yerevan-Tbilisi, September 05 (Prime-News Business) -
Lebanon is the leader in the total amount of foreign investments made in Armenian economy's real sector in the first six months of the current year with USD 84 million, which exceeded the index of the same period of the previous year by 69.3%.
According to the Armenian National Statistical Service, Russia has made investments amounting to nearly USD 74 million in that period, the amount of which exceeded the index of January-June of the previous year 3.8-fold. The amount of Argentina's investments makes more than USD 23.5 million in the first six months of the current year, increasing by 36.8% against January-June of 2006. The next big investors and Cyprus, nearly USD 7.2 million (increased two-fold), Virginian Islands, more than USD 6.8 million (no investments have been made by that country in the first six months of 2006), France - nearly USD 10.5 million (growth 2.3-fold), the USA - nearly USD 11.3 million (decreased by 24%), Germany - nearly USD 3.6 million (decreased by 70.5%), and the UK - nearly USD 6.4 million (growth five-fold).
Lebanon's investments in the first six months of 2007 have been almost completely done in the communication sphere. Russia's investments in that sphere amounted to nearly USD 38 million, in the sphere of financial brokerage - nearly USD 8.2 million, in the metallurgical industry - nearly USD 16.1 million. USD 23 million out of the investments made in Armenia by Argentina have been made in the sphere of air transport and nearly USD 1.1 million - in the spheres of auxiliary and additional transport activity.
Cyprus has made investments of nearly USD 4.8 million in the sphere of wholesale trade and trade through brokers, investments of nearly USD 2.4 million - in the construction sphere. The investments made in Armenia by Virginian Islands have been completely made in the spheres of hotel and restaurant services. USD 10.1 million out of the financial investments made by France have been done in the sphere of production of foodstuffs, including drinks. Nearly USD 4.3 million out of the investments made by the USA have been done in the spheres of activity connected with computing devices, more than USD 1.9 million – in researches and elaborations, USD 3.3 million - in rendering other kinds of services to consumers. The investments made by Germany have been done in the sphere of Armenian mining industry, and those of the UK in the spheres of financial brokerage (nearly USD 4.7 million), production of equipment for television and telecommunication (nearly USD 0.9 million), and publishing activity, as well as sphere of multiplication of disks containing recorded information, news agency “Noyan Tapan” informs.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A TASTE OF CHINA IN KARABAKH
Three Chinese cooks enliven life in a small Karabakhi village.
By Lusine Musaelian in Vank, Nagorny Karabakh
Local people in Karabakh have given them names that are easier to memorise: Juan Jui San turned into Jivan, Juan Go became Gurgen, and Juan Kai Ti was called Anna.
The three Chinese cooks are far from home. They have settled in the remote territory in the South Caucasus and not even in the Karabakhi capital Stepanakert but in the northern village of Vank in the Martakert district. And surprisingly, they not only speak the Karabakh Armenian dialect, but have a marked Martakert accent too.
Jivan, 28, and Gurgen and Anna, both 25, work in a Chinese restaurant at the Eklektika Hotel in Vank.
Karabakh's only Chinese residents, they certainly stand out. According to the official census conducted in 2005, the internationally unrecognised Nagorny Karabakh republic has 137,737 inhabitants of whom Armenians make up 99.7 of the population.
The Chinese cooks came to Karabakh on the invitation of the hotel owner, Russian-based businessman and patron Levon Hairapetian who was born in Vank. Hairapetian found them through a friend, an Armenian businessman living in China. The three came on a year's contract but hope to extend their stay in Karabakh.
The Chinese say they had no idea how they would communicate when they arrived
"But within three months we started talking Karabakhi little by little," said Gurgen in the local language.
Karabakh Armenian is very different from the Armenian language spoken in Armenia. The three talk with difficulty but are able to get by in everyday conversation.
Vank, which is also home to the famous medieval church of Gandzasar, is the focus of a regeneration project, mainly thanks to the efforts of Hairapetian and is already far more prosperous than other rural communities in Karabakh. Although it suffered badly in the 1991-4 war, there are very few traces of battle damage left.
A construction boom is underway with hotels, recreation centres, a new school and even a zoo being built. The only disco, open-air cinema and public swimming pool in Karabakh are all located in Vank. There is even a local radio station called Radio Vank.
The village hosts what has now become a celebrated annual event, a donkey race, whose high-profile attendees have included Karabakh-born Armenian president Robert Kocharian.
The Karabakhis have been nicknamed "donkeys" because of their reputation for stubbornness. The locals take pride in the stereotype and there are several statues of donkeys in the village.
This diversity makes it less surprising that Vank is also home to a Chinese restaurant staffed by three Chinese expatriates.
Gurgen reveals to IWPR that he plans to stay because he has found the love of his life here, a 10th-grade high school student from Vank, whose name he declines to reveal in case her parents learn about their love affair which is still a secret. He says he dreams of getting married and staying in Karabakh.
Jivan and Anna are husband and wife, who have left their three-year-old son behind in Guangxi. Jivan says he likes Vank because the locals want to see more children born, not less, unlike his homeland and he and his wife hope to have more children. Every time a baby is born in Vank, Hairapetian presents the family with 500 US dollars.
"It's a pity China is not like that - they prohibit having more than one child there," he said.
Anna is struck by the way within a short time everyone in the village knew her and said hello. "You're one of a million in China; even your neighbour does not know you by sight," she said.
The trio have adapted well. They now drink the famous local tutovka mulberry vodka and know how to propose toasts and play backgammon.
They did not want to talk about politics and seemed to know little about the unresolved Nagorny Karabakh conflict.
Some of the locals are delighted that the three foreigners are bringing a taste of another world to remote Karabakh.
Svetlana Lazarian, who has become a close friend of the Chinese, say that the villagers have grown fond of them and that they are confounding expectations.
"Once Jivan went to a market in Stepanakert to buy some food," she said with a laugh. "The shop assistant thought he was a tourist, wrote the total price, 6,700 Armenian drams on a piece of paper and handed it to Jivan. Jivan looked at the paper and read out loud the sum in Armenian. That scared the shop assistant a lot - a Chinese speaking in Karabakh Armenian!"
Tourists at the hotel witnessed our conversation and were interested in hearing the Chinese speak the Karabakh Armenian dialect. They have become minor celebrities for that reason.
"But we have not come to Vank to amuse people, we've come to establish Chinese cuisine here. Of course, sometimes we are not able to find the food here," said Jivan, registering a small complaint about living in such a far-away spot
Lusine Musaelian is a correspondent for Demo newspaper in Nagorny Karabakh and a member of IWPR's EU-funded Cross Caucasus Journalism Network project.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
INTERNET RE-UNITES ARMENIAN, AZERI FRIENDS
Old friendships maintained across the Karabakh conflict divide.
By Lusine Musaelian and Anahit Danielian in Nagorny Karabakh
The tragedy of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict that erupted in the late Eighties split many families and friendships down the middle - but in quiet ways, many ordinary people on either side of the divide are keeping up contact with one another.
Svetlana Firian, who is Armenian, uses the internet to preserve her friendship with her old Azerbaijani schoolmate, even though they haven't seen each other for more than 17 years.
Firian, now 44, was born and brought up in the Azerbaijani capital Baku. She asked for the name of her Azerbaijani friend, who still lives in the city, to be withheld to avoid creating problems for her.
The two girls were close childhood friends, and both went on to become professional sportswomen, even competing for the Soviet national team.
"When my child was born, I was forced to give up sport," said Firian. "But my friend successfully continued her career in professional sport. In 1989, at the time they were deporting Armenians from Baku, she was taking part in a championship abroad."
Firian was forced to flee her native city without saying goodbye to her closest friend. The escalating conflict, which soon broke out into full-scale war, made it almost impossible for the friends to keep in touch.
"There were no telephone lines and the post didn't work, but my friend sent me letters and I wrote in reply via acquaintances in Russia," she said.
She settled in Nagorny Karabakh, which has been controlled by an Armenian administration since the war ended in 1994, and still lives there, working as headmistress of a sports school.
The friendship has endured despite everything. Firian rummages in her handbag and proudly shows us the last photograph of the two of them together in Baku.
During her friend's occasional trips abroad, Firian says that she always receives a phone call.
The appearance of the internet in Karabakh in recent years has made it much easier for the two to maintain the friendship that began in Baku's School No. 113.
She says they both steer away from political topics in their letters and discuss their personal lives and daily experiences, as well as reminiscing and planning for the future.
"I am one of those who fought for the independence of Karabakh and who believes that was the right policy," she said. "But it is impossible to isolate two peoples and forbid them to communicate. How can you destroy personal memories, how can you hate a loved one and not talk to them because of political circumstances?
"In her last letter, she wrote that she was busy with her newborn child and that she didn't have much time," she said. "I think that when she has less to worry about, we will try to meet up - probably in a third country."
Firian and her Azerbaijani school friend are not the only people who have benefited from the arrival of email and internet services. Most prefer to be discreet about their contacts with the other side, but the success of the BBC's "friends reunited" web forum for Karabakh (http://newsforums.bbc.co.uk/ws/thread.jspa?threadID=225&start=0) indicates there are many people renewing old contacts via the new technology. Famil Ismailov, a BBC staffer who set up the service in 2004, told IWPR that it has helped at least 50 pairs of friends get back in touch in the three years that it has been going.
While the internet is now easily accessible in major towns, it remains a dream for many Armenians and Azerbaijanis in the countryside. For these people, the International Committee of the Red Cross, ICRC, offers a postal service that enables them to keep in touch with their friends.
The head of the ICRC's Karabakh office, Jacques Barberis, told IWPR that in the last year his staff have sent more than 50 letters from Karabakh to Azerbaijan, and received a similar number of replies. The letters are written on special forms provided by the ICRC.
Barberis said the service had two aims - to restore old contacts that had been broken and to preserve existing ones. "The latter especially concerns those people who live in remote villages where there are no other means of communication," he said.
In some cases however, political considerations have led to people losing touch with loved ones left on the other side of the conflict divide.
Tofik Aliev is one of only a tiny handful of Azerbaijanis who now live in the overwhelmingly Armenian region of Karabakh. Now 66, he lives in the village of Askeran with his Armenian wife, Valentina.
Aliev told IWPR that he has not had any news of his seven brothers or two sisters since 1990, and that despite his wife's encouragement, he chooses not to be in touch with them or seek them out.
"If I start to take an interest, it's possible that they will put pressure on my relatives there, and that could harm them," said Aliev. "Better if there is no news about me at all than that something bad happens to them."
"I was working as a driver when I came to Askeran in November 1964 and met Valentina," Aliev said. "We married in 1966 and began living in Askeran."
"Tofik's parents and loved ones never did anything bad to me," said Valentina. "We lived peacefully and in friendship and we used to visit one another, until the Karabakh movement began."
After the movement to have Karabakh detached from what was then Soviet Azerbaijan took off in 1988, the couple moved away from Karabakh to live with Aliev's Azerbaijani family, but ill health subsequently forced Valentina to return home. The couple were apart for eight months before Tofik decided to return to Askeran.
"My father always used to your family should not fall apart," he said.
The couple live in a small one-room apartment in Askeran, getting by on a pension of 40,000 Armenian drams (120 US dollars) a month and the fruit from their small orchard. Tofik's only complaint is that his wife is such a big cat-lover that "she feeds them first, then me".
"Our only helper is God - and Tatul, who helps us when we need it," said Aliev. "Tatul" is the mayor of Askeran, who is a friend of theirs.
Aliev said that when he starts missing his family he switches on Azerbaijani television, which is still easily available in Karabakh across the ceasefire line separating the two peoples.
Lusine Musaelian is a journalist with the Karabakhopen news service, and Anahit Danielian is a correspondent with Demo newspaper in Nagorny Karabakh. Both are members of IWPR's Cross Caucasus Journalism Network.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Old friendships maintained across the Karabakh conflict divide.
By Lusine Musaelian and Anahit Danielian in Nagorny Karabakh
The tragedy of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict that erupted in the late Eighties split many families and friendships down the middle - but in quiet ways, many ordinary people on either side of the divide are keeping up contact with one another.
Svetlana Firian, who is Armenian, uses the internet to preserve her friendship with her old Azerbaijani schoolmate, even though they haven't seen each other for more than 17 years.
Firian, now 44, was born and brought up in the Azerbaijani capital Baku. She asked for the name of her Azerbaijani friend, who still lives in the city, to be withheld to avoid creating problems for her.
The two girls were close childhood friends, and both went on to become professional sportswomen, even competing for the Soviet national team.
"When my child was born, I was forced to give up sport," said Firian. "But my friend successfully continued her career in professional sport. In 1989, at the time they were deporting Armenians from Baku, she was taking part in a championship abroad."
Firian was forced to flee her native city without saying goodbye to her closest friend. The escalating conflict, which soon broke out into full-scale war, made it almost impossible for the friends to keep in touch.
"There were no telephone lines and the post didn't work, but my friend sent me letters and I wrote in reply via acquaintances in Russia," she said.
She settled in Nagorny Karabakh, which has been controlled by an Armenian administration since the war ended in 1994, and still lives there, working as headmistress of a sports school.
The friendship has endured despite everything. Firian rummages in her handbag and proudly shows us the last photograph of the two of them together in Baku.
During her friend's occasional trips abroad, Firian says that she always receives a phone call.
The appearance of the internet in Karabakh in recent years has made it much easier for the two to maintain the friendship that began in Baku's School No. 113.
She says they both steer away from political topics in their letters and discuss their personal lives and daily experiences, as well as reminiscing and planning for the future.
"I am one of those who fought for the independence of Karabakh and who believes that was the right policy," she said. "But it is impossible to isolate two peoples and forbid them to communicate. How can you destroy personal memories, how can you hate a loved one and not talk to them because of political circumstances?
"In her last letter, she wrote that she was busy with her newborn child and that she didn't have much time," she said. "I think that when she has less to worry about, we will try to meet up - probably in a third country."
Firian and her Azerbaijani school friend are not the only people who have benefited from the arrival of email and internet services. Most prefer to be discreet about their contacts with the other side, but the success of the BBC's "friends reunited" web forum for Karabakh (http://newsforums.bbc.co.uk/ws/thread.jspa?threadID=225&start=0) indicates there are many people renewing old contacts via the new technology. Famil Ismailov, a BBC staffer who set up the service in 2004, told IWPR that it has helped at least 50 pairs of friends get back in touch in the three years that it has been going.
While the internet is now easily accessible in major towns, it remains a dream for many Armenians and Azerbaijanis in the countryside. For these people, the International Committee of the Red Cross, ICRC, offers a postal service that enables them to keep in touch with their friends.
The head of the ICRC's Karabakh office, Jacques Barberis, told IWPR that in the last year his staff have sent more than 50 letters from Karabakh to Azerbaijan, and received a similar number of replies. The letters are written on special forms provided by the ICRC.
Barberis said the service had two aims - to restore old contacts that had been broken and to preserve existing ones. "The latter especially concerns those people who live in remote villages where there are no other means of communication," he said.
In some cases however, political considerations have led to people losing touch with loved ones left on the other side of the conflict divide.
Tofik Aliev is one of only a tiny handful of Azerbaijanis who now live in the overwhelmingly Armenian region of Karabakh. Now 66, he lives in the village of Askeran with his Armenian wife, Valentina.
Aliev told IWPR that he has not had any news of his seven brothers or two sisters since 1990, and that despite his wife's encouragement, he chooses not to be in touch with them or seek them out.
"If I start to take an interest, it's possible that they will put pressure on my relatives there, and that could harm them," said Aliev. "Better if there is no news about me at all than that something bad happens to them."
"I was working as a driver when I came to Askeran in November 1964 and met Valentina," Aliev said. "We married in 1966 and began living in Askeran."
"Tofik's parents and loved ones never did anything bad to me," said Valentina. "We lived peacefully and in friendship and we used to visit one another, until the Karabakh movement began."
After the movement to have Karabakh detached from what was then Soviet Azerbaijan took off in 1988, the couple moved away from Karabakh to live with Aliev's Azerbaijani family, but ill health subsequently forced Valentina to return home. The couple were apart for eight months before Tofik decided to return to Askeran.
"My father always used to your family should not fall apart," he said.
The couple live in a small one-room apartment in Askeran, getting by on a pension of 40,000 Armenian drams (120 US dollars) a month and the fruit from their small orchard. Tofik's only complaint is that his wife is such a big cat-lover that "she feeds them first, then me".
"Our only helper is God - and Tatul, who helps us when we need it," said Aliev. "Tatul" is the mayor of Askeran, who is a friend of theirs.
Aliev said that when he starts missing his family he switches on Azerbaijani television, which is still easily available in Karabakh across the ceasefire line separating the two peoples.
Lusine Musaelian is a journalist with the Karabakhopen news service, and Anahit Danielian is a correspondent with Demo newspaper in Nagorny Karabakh. Both are members of IWPR's Cross Caucasus Journalism Network.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
HSBC BANK ARMENIA TO OPEN TWO NEW BRANCHES
Noyan Tapan
Sep 5, 2007
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 5, NOYAN TAPAN. The official opening ceremonies of
two new branches of HSBC Bank Armenia CJSC are scheduled for September
15 in Yerevan. NT was informed that the branches will be located at
1 Nersisian Street and 31a Tigran the Great Avenue respectively.
On the occasion of opening these branches, a press conference with
the participation of David Budd, member of HSBC Bank OJSC Board,
first executive director of HSBC Bank Armenia, and Anthony Turner,
the current executive director, will be held at the bank's head office
on the same day.
To recap, HSBC Bank Armenia currently has three offices - all of them
are in Yerevan.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Noyan Tapan
Sep 5, 2007
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 5, NOYAN TAPAN. The official opening ceremonies of
two new branches of HSBC Bank Armenia CJSC are scheduled for September
15 in Yerevan. NT was informed that the branches will be located at
1 Nersisian Street and 31a Tigran the Great Avenue respectively.
On the occasion of opening these branches, a press conference with
the participation of David Budd, member of HSBC Bank OJSC Board,
first executive director of HSBC Bank Armenia, and Anthony Turner,
the current executive director, will be held at the bank's head office
on the same day.
To recap, HSBC Bank Armenia currently has three offices - all of them
are in Yerevan.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BRITISH AIRLINE BMI TO ENTER ARMENIAN MARKET
Noyan Tapan
Sep 5, 2007
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 5, NOYAN TAPAN. By acquiring BMED - a franchise
company of British Airways, BMI, which is the second largest airline
operating at London's Heathrow Airport, will enter the Armenian
market. According to a press release submitted to NT, as a result
of this deal, BMI will become the only British airline to operate
flights between Armenia and the UK.
At present the airline operates about 170 flights daily from Heathrow
Airport and is a member of Star Alliance - the world's biggest
aviation alliance.
Noyan Tapan
Sep 5, 2007
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 5, NOYAN TAPAN. By acquiring BMED - a franchise
company of British Airways, BMI, which is the second largest airline
operating at London's Heathrow Airport, will enter the Armenian
market. According to a press release submitted to NT, as a result
of this deal, BMI will become the only British airline to operate
flights between Armenia and the UK.
At present the airline operates about 170 flights daily from Heathrow
Airport and is a member of Star Alliance - the world's biggest
aviation alliance.
No comments:
Post a Comment