Albania BoA sees 2009 GDP growth above 4 percent

TIRANA, Nov 17 – The central Bank of Albania said that economic growth in the country in 2009 was expected to surpass recent forecasts made by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), more than four percent.
The IMF said that growth in Albania in 2009 would probably be in the range of 3.5 to four percent.
The BoA governor Ardian Fullani said that growth would be from 4 to 4.5 percent, though the central government, on its side, stuck to the 6 percent according to its draft budget.
Fullani took part at the European Central Bank’s 5th Central Banking Conference.
Next year would be a testing year for the global economy but Albania was trying to ensure that the right economic incentives were given to cushion any blow, he said.
The central bank was still targeting inflation of around three percent in 2009, he said, adding that current interest rate levels were appropriate for the economy.