Date: June 9th, 3 p.m.

Location: ISET, 16 Zandukeli Street, Tbilisi, Georgia

After being steadily optimistic for most of 2014 and in the first quarter of 2015, Georgia’s business confidence dropped by 24.5 points to an all-time low level of 3.6 on a scale of [-100; 100] points. The survey, which included 168 firms, suggests that business confidence declined on all measures, across all sectors, and for all firm sizes. Moreover, it is reflected in business perceptions concerning both current performance and expectations concerning the future.

The sharp decline in business confidence appears to be related to the recent depreciation of the Georgian lari and the political wrangling that followed. The drop in business confidence comes after seven months during which Georgian consumer confidence has been steadily declining, affecting consumer demand and sales. While the retail sector was the first one to be affected by the slump in demand, second quarter data suggest that the Georgian financial sector is also starting to feel the heat. Financial sector confidence dropped by a record 50.8 points (from 50.9 index points in the first quarter of 2015 to merely 0.1 points in the second quarter)!

The press conference will be led by Maya Grigolia, Senior Researcher at ISET-PI, who will present the results of the Georgian Business Confidence survey for the 2nd Quarter of 2015. Additional comments will be shared by Eric Livny, President of ISET, and Lekso Aleksishvili, Chairman of PMCG, and Vice Chair of ICC.

Contact Information:
Maya GRIGOLIA, Senior Researcher                                            Nino NANITASHVILI, Head of Communications
E-mail: m.grigolia@iset.ge                                                            E-mail: n.nanitashvili@iset.ge
Tel: +995 (32) 250 71 77 ext 220                                                  Tel: +995 (32) 250 71 77 ext 228
Mob: 595 362 536                                                                        Mob: 599 520 043