2017 will go down in history as a year of deep, profound and effective economic reforms, Azerbaijani President

Baku, January 1, AZERTAC "2017 will go down in history as a year of deep, profound and effective economic reforms," said President llham Aliyev in his message of congratulation on the occasion of the Day of Solidarity of World Azerbaijanis. "Even though the oil price is still at a low level and oil production in Azerbaijan is reducing, Azerbaijan has managed to come out of this difficult situation with dignity. This is also acknowledged by reputed international organizations. According to the calculations of the Davos World Economic Forum, Azerbaijan is ranked in 35th place in the world in terms of economic competitiveness. This, first of all, shows that the very serious reforms under way in our country are producing excellent results. This year, the non-oil sector of the economy has increased by more than 2 per cent, the non-oil industry by more than 3 per cent and agriculture by over 4 per cent." The head of state said: "I believe that this is a very good result under the current circumstances. I am sure that these figures will be even higher in 2018. At the same time, we are also using our currency reserves very effectively." "Although the oil price has dropped, we have managed to increase our foreign exchange reserves, and by a lot – our foreign exchange reserves have increased by more than 4.5 billion dollars. These are our strategic reserves. This is one of the factors providing and strengthening our both economic and political independence," the President added.