The economy of Belarus continues to grow. But there are two snags

Judging by the latest statistics, Belarus is gradually coming out of the crisis.

According to Belstat data, the situation in the economy continues to improve. For example, in January-August 2017, the country's GDP grew by 1.6% compared to the same period last year.

In addition, other important economic indicators are also encouraging: industrial output rose by 6.1%, agricultural output - by 3.6%, and retail trade turnover - by 1.9%.

Against the backdrop of such rosy statistics, it is impossible not to pay attention to two points that spoil the whole picture. The first of them is the continuing decline in investment in fixed assets, as well as the construction sector, which has slumped by 12.8%. The second old disease of the Belarusian economy is the huge stocks of finished products in warehouses, which still exceed 58%.

This suggests at least that the growth of the Belarusian economy cannot yet be called irreversible, and the crisis tendencies can return at any moment - for example, after the fall in world prices for oil or potash fertilizers.