«If we take the total figure, the drop in external trade with EEU countries was registered by the National Statistical Committee at the level of 18.6 percent (in 2016). But if you look at the structure of trade, it is evident that imports declined by 23.1 percent, while exports increased by 4.3 percent," he said.
According to Oleg Pankratov, despite all the external negative factors and the reduction in volume of trade within EEU,
Oleg Pankratov said that the decline in imports became a positive thing for the «trade balance» of the republic. «Trade surplus, in its turn, directly affects the country’s GDP: the more positive it is, the larger is the GDP," he stressed.
Vice Prime Minister considers claims by some politicians of the republic about the negative impact of EEU accession on the economy of Kyrgyzstan as groundless.
Oleg Pankratov is sure that
«When we speak about an alternative, we should look — what already exists on the market and what we are offered, but there are no other real proposals," Oleg Pankratov believes.