In terms of debt burden, Mongolia ranked 59th out of 66 developing countries, with the economy shrinking by 10.7 percent in the first quarter of 2020. The total foreign debt reached USD 30.6 billion at the end of 2019, increased by USD 1.9 billion in the last four years. The country’s external debt per capita had also increased from MNT 15 million to MNT 28.3 million. Total revenue in the trade sector contracted by 5.4 percent, with businesses losing more than MNT 280 billion since the pandemic. Thousands of people who used to work in the sector are now unemployed without income. Moreover, revenue from the catering sector decreased by MNT 2.8 billion in the first quarter. In terms of different industries, most of the travel companies saw a deficit, with hotel revenues down 42.9 percent, or nearly double their operations. The external debt has risen sharply by 35 percent over the past five years, and Mongolia is scheduled to repay USD 2.9 billion in foreign debt next year. This is about 70 percent of the country’s official foreign exchange reserves which stands at USD 4.09 billion. As of May, the Bank of Mongolia (BoM) has purchased 8.5 tons of precious metals. Specifically, gold accounts for 6.8 tons of and silver 1.7 tons. The gold purchase has doubled from the previous year, and the central bank and the government are estimating to increase it to 23 tons this year.

Published Date:2020-06-10