Armenia will shortly start negotiations with the World Trade Organization (WTO) for revising its customs duties, Armenia's Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan said at the 2nd Economic Forum of the Republican Party of Armenia "Armenia-Customs Union: Opportunities and Challenges" on Saturday.
He said that in Armenia customs duties average 2.4% while in the Customs Union they are three times higher.
"So, our Customs Union membership will be bad for importers but good for domestic producers. For example, in the Customs Union customs duties for meat are high, so, this may boost investments in cattle breeding in Armenia," Sargsyan said.
He noted that as a WTO member, Armenia has certain obligations, which have to be revised now that the country is going to join the Customs Union.
Earlier Armenia's Economy Minister Vahram Avanesyan told ArmInfo that in the next five years the Customs Union is expected to reduce its tariffs from 9% to 5% on an average. "This is in line with Russia's tariffs policy for WTO. So, in some five years the Russians will have more goods with low tariffs than we will," the Minister said.
Armenia joined WTO in 2003.