Press Review 05/13/2017

The opening ceremony of the IV Islamic Solidarity Games, the high prices of food, the reasons for the decline in lending, and the impact of devaluation on poor families are the topics of today's press.

The Azerbaijan writes about yesterday's opening of the IV Islamic Solidarity Games in Baku and reminds of the upcoming major international competitions in Baku.

At the present Islamic Games, athletes will play 269 sets of medals, and Azerbaijan will be represented by 425 athletes. The Games will be watched supposedly be more than a billion viewers from over 50 countries.

The Echo published an article on the growth of prices for food.

With the onset of the economic crisis, domestic products, which are produced from imported raw materials, have risen in price by 25-100%.

Some types of cereals, seafood, butter and sausages are constantly becoming more expensive. The same goes for domestic vegetables and fruits, which are also abnormally expensive.

The Novoye Vremya continues to write about the problems of bank loans. According to statistics, lending to the economy is declining. Thus, credit investments in the economy as of April 1, 2017 are estimated at 15 billion 789 million manats. At the same time, interest rates on loans are growing.

The Yeni Musavat discusses with the experts the situation of low-income families against the backdrop of the crisis in the country. The purchasing power of the population has decreased by 25%. To stabilize the situation, Azerbaijan should develop exports and services, and improve the banking sector. Experts note that to protect the poor, no specific decisions have been made, despite a significant increase in prices. -0----