YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 19, NOYAN TAPAN. The composite economic indices, except for the business environment index, grew in Armenia in the third quarter compared with the second quarter of 2006. In the quarter under review, the business environment index made 93, the economic activity index - 112.9, and the consumer confidence index - 103.1. These indices are calculated based on the ratio of "the balances of the so-called index responses" - the percentage ratio of the given quarter's balance to the the previous quarter's balance. According to the press service of the Central Bank of Armenia (CBA), the balance of the business environment index responses made 57.1 in the second quarter of this year and 53.11 - in the third quarter. The balances of the economic activity index responses made 70.1 and 74.48 respectively, and those of the consumer confidence index responses - 48.8 and 50.32. To recap, since 2005, the CBA has conducted quarterly surveys of financial, non-financial organizations and households. The purpose is to assess changes in the current economic situation compared with the previous period, identify the economic expectations of surveyed entities, and to calculate and publish the composite economic indices based on survey results. In the third quarter of 2006, more than 700 organizations in industry, construction and the service sector and 2,100 households were surveyed.

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