BoA: Business and consumers are lacking confidence

Tirana, 17 Tue 2009 – WC has started to show its effects in Albania and is reflecting itself in businesses and consumer confidence throughout the country. For the first time, the Bank of Albania has published a report monitoring business and consumers alike. The report shows that general confidence in the last quarter of 2008 has suffered a significant drop in the service sector, industry, and in the Albanian consumer. Main factors in play, according to the report, were the rise in unemployment, the ever present informal economy, and the everlasting energy crisis. Confidence in the service sector has dropped 7 points during the last quarter due to general economic shrinkage, unemployment and an insecure financial situation.
Consumers have shown lack of confidence when it comes to their financial and economic situation and are less prone to either spend or save more. According to surveys, consumers are worried about a rise in unemployment and believe the phenomena will grow in the 2nd half of 2009.
“The decision to publish these indicators went through a careful process and it matured when experts and decision makers in BoA were convinced that confidence indicators, accompanied with other indicators, offered additional valuable information in relation to the latest and the future developments in the real sector of Albanian economy,” said Ardian Fullani, BoA Governor. The current data confirms that businesses and consumers confidence is below the long term average registered during the past years.