Inflation was 7.2% y/y and 0.9% m/m in April 2021
Annual CPI inflation came in at 7.2% in April 2021, unchanged from previous month, according to Geostat. Core inflation (non-food, non-energy) was 6.9% in April, and core inflation excluding tobacco was also 6.9% in April. By categories, annual inflation was mainly driven by price changes in transport (+12.4% y/y, +1.53ppts), housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels (+7.1% y/y, +1.14ppts), health (+13.8% y/y, +1.04ppts), food and non-alcoholic beverages (+3.0% y/y, +0.94ppts), hotels and restaurants (+15.0% y/y, +0.73ppts), furnishings, household equipment and maintenance (+9.0% y/y, +0.50ppts) and alcoholic beverages and tobacco (+8.0% y/y, +0.50ppts) categories. On a monthly basis, there was 0.9% inflation in April 2021, reflecting price increase in transport (+3.0% m/m) category.
International arrivals up 140.4% y/y in April 2021
Total international arrivals (tourists and same-day arrivals) to Georgia rebounded significantly by 140.4% y/y to 82.5k persons in April 2021, according to GNTA. This growth was driven by surge in tourist arrivals (+182.2% y/y) from last year’s low base. The largest contribution to international visitor growth came from Israel (+140x higher y/y), followed by Turkey (+48.4% y/y) in April. Overall, in 4M21 total international arrivals stood at 212.7k (-81.6% y/y), of which tourist arrivals reached 192.4k (-75.7% y/y) persons. Meanwhile, we estimate tourism revenues at US$ 98.3mn (-77.5% y/y) in 4M21.
International reserves at US$ 4.1bn in April 2021
Gross international reserves increased by 19.0% y/y to US$ 4.1bn in April 2021 according to NBG. On a monthly basis, the reserves were up by 0.9% (+US$ 34.9mn). Notably, NBG sold US$ 82.9mn in April via FX auction. Changes in reserves were attributed to the government and banking sector FX operations, and/or asset revaluation.
