In my latest post, I delved into the topic of Azerbaijani Manat’s grim-looking short-term future following the surging demand for foreign exchange in March and concluded that there is a substantial risk of devaluation during 2020. In this post, I am going to share a concept on how the government can at least delay this devaluation for the near future and avoid exacerbating the economic situation in the country already troubled by coronavirus epidemic…

Continue reading “An Unlikely Hero – How Gold Can Aid Manat?” →

Many of the social, economic and political problems of Azerbaijan can be explained by a multitude of factors. In my opinion, above all, we must recognize the impact of the dysfunctional education system. Therefore, I decided to dedicate my next couple of posts to the national education policy.

Continue reading ““Free” Education of Azerbaijan” →

As a broad term, fiscal policy refers to the management of taxes and expenditures by governments. It is certainly the number one tool that the governments utilize to intervene into the national economy. That intervention, on the other hand, should have definite restraints, which brings us to the topic of fiscal rules…

Continue reading “Fiscal Rule of Azerbaijan: A Positive First Step?” →

State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan (SOFAZ) without a doubt plays a major role in the national economy. Created in 2000, the Fund’s vital role in Azerbaijan motivated me to share my thoughts on the matter…

Continue reading “State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan – A Disoriented SWF” →

One of the most predominant principles of international trade is the comparative advantage theory, developed by the British economist David Ricardo in the early 19^th century. To put it simply, the theory argues that a country can boost its welfare if it specializes in certain products in which it has comparably lower cost of production (in other words, lower opportunity cost) and then trade with others. Keeping this principle in mind, one may wonder, in which products Azerbaijan can have comparative advantage and how can we use that to maximize our national well-being?

Continue reading “Comparative Advantage of Azerbaijan” →

When the global economy was facing a relentless recession in 2008 – 2009 period, Azerbaijani economy was still doing well enough with annual GDP growth of ~10%. Naturally, one may wonder, how come Azerbaijani economy did not went under a recession (or at least stagnation of economic growth) if there was a global crisis going on?

Continue reading “How much is Azerbaijan integrated into the world?” →

A while ago I came across a news story about imported potatoes. With the decision of Cabinet of Ministers, the tariffs on potatoes are doubled, from the previous rate of 15% to 30%[1]. This might not be a binding decision, because as Minister of Agriculture, Inam Karimov himself mentioned, Azerbaijan’s potato production is two times more than its consumption[2]. Considering this statistic, how does the new law fit in? and overall, what is going on with protectionism in Azerbaijan?

Continue reading “Protectionism or Free Trade?” →