Artan P쳮aska
apernaska@tiranatimes.com
After numerous complaints and six months of negotiations with the importers, the Ministry of Finances (MoF) has agreed to lower reference prices for containers coming from China and has asked the Customs to apply new reference prices.
Changing attitude – but still discontent
Months on end, importers are reported to have paid a reference price of nearly 4500 US Dollars (USD) per container coming from China, at a time when the real cost was reported to have been between 1200 and 1500 USD (Shqip, 2.06.2009). But the importers do not seem pleased with the measure. They think it is not enough. The newspaper reveals that the Ministry of Finances (MoF) has asked the Customs to apply 3000 USD as the new reference-price per container coming from China. They say that the real costs are still less than that (almost half the reduction announced by MoF) and that what they are asked to pay does not match with the new reality produced by global crisis.
The newspapers reveal that, since December 2008, importers were paying reference-prices chosen by the Customs but not connected with reality. The prices fixed by the Customs have little in common with a reality which has been affected globally by crisis – estimates the press.
Referencing system as an authoritarian system
If it were true, this would point to a major problem in the reference-price system, that of being unable to reflect change. Without even discussing of the well-foundation of the establishement of numerous reference-prices and reference-costs, it is evident that if the system is not able to reflect change, it will be a hampering economic overcharge on economic actors and may pooren re-investment elasticity and market come-back, as well as forge ill-humoured and gloomy economic climate. The question of the reference system is touching not only goods and their prices. It is also being used by the fiscal administration to estimate reference wages, and this may suggest extention to referencing of services in general. Referencing things and values is becoming a general attitude of the Albanian fiscal system.
Some analysts present the implementation of the reference system in fiscal affairs as a system designed to prevent fraud. But while the intentions may have been positively set, many cases are reported that reference prices or costs have been higher than market prices, making at those times payment of custom duties at reference value more expensive than duties fixed on market value. Which in turn may organically produce price increases and inflation and enharden the elasticity of the labour market.
Trade with China
Trade with China has averagely increased by 10 % each year reports Shqip, believeing this to be due to the initial low cost of Chinese productions as well as the correct attitude of Asian partners. According to the newspaper, in 2008 goods representing a value of 33 milliard Albanian lek련ALL) have ben imported from China. That represents 7.4 % of the total imports. Taken at weight level, the imports from China in 2008 have amounted to 156.492 tons which represent 3.4 % of all the total tonnage imported in Albania.
At the view of the data released in the press, the trade balance gives particular indication of the state of affairs in Albanian economy. With 122.455 tons of exports towards China (that is nearly almost as much as imported from China), Albanian exports amounted only to 3.2 milliard Albanian lek뮠That would suggest that we export to China raw material and import elaborated products. The weight of China in Albanian exports is indicated by the press to be 7 %. In the last years China has earned herself a reputation not only as a cheap producer, but also as a country in great need of raw material and energy, in order to fuel her expansive development. While Albania, which ranges now as a developing country, seems to still have acted as a “third world” economy.
