Chief Executive of Mongolian Investment Banking (MIGB) Group LLC, Bilguun Ankhbayar talked about the current economic situation of Mongolia amid deadly flulike virus, which had been first confirmed in Wuhan, China. It is threatening the country’s economy as well as international businesses all around the world.

-How will the coronavirus affect the commodity market?

-The commodity market index is changing drastically changing due to the price rate of consumer goods. The consumer price index is fluctuating due to emerging social and economic problems.

-Will the current situation emerged in China slow down the construction work and the steel industry. How will it affect Mongolia?

-According to a survey presented before the virus, the world economic growth was expected to cool this year. During the Lunar New Year of China, the transport sector declined about 25-45 percent. This will have a negative effect on Mongolia’s export.

-The gold price has been increasing in the last year. Is there any risk in trade?

-There is a high risk, since Mongolia imports as much as 90 percent of its consumer goods from China. Foreign reserves have increased relatively compared to 2016 but the country may face the financial crisis in 2020 due to the Government of Mongolia and the central bank’s foreign debt repayment. Also, currencies of China, Thailand, and Korea are devaluing. Uncertainty in the market has been growing as well.

-The partnership between the private and public sectors is crucial in encouraging economic growth. How is the private sector cooperation in the coal industry?

-Mongolia’s GDP equals USD 11-12 dollars, which was mainly contributed by the imports of coal, and copper to China in the last decade. Foreign direct investment and foreign aids contribute too. Even though we’re making much effort in export, the economy is not growing significantly. Also, the currency rate is lowering year by year. In order to fix this, we need to attract more foreign investments. It is also fundamental to focus on the global explorational trend in mining. The gold industry will be in spot in 2020 and 2021. Mongolia should find a way of luring cobalt, lithium, and zinc-based investment. Electric power is likely to be in trend than the oil-based power sources as the electricity is evolving globally. Therefore, uranium price is expected to increase further in 2020. Mongolia’s economy has the potential to grow as a result of the right policy.