TIRANA, April 29 – Affected by a sharp drop in international oil prices and a slowdown in garment and footwear products, Albania’s exports dropped by 2 percent in the first quarter of this year, according to data published by the country’s state statistical institute, INSTAT.
Double-digit increases in exports of ‘construction material and metals’ and ‘machinery, equipment and spare parts’ saved the country’s exports from a sharp decline in the first quarter of this year when traditional garment and footwear exports and minerals, fuel and electricity suffered.
Albania’s exports dropped by 2 percent to around 58 billion lek (€408 mln) in January-March 2015 when exports of minerals, fuel and electricity dropped by a sharp 30 percent to around 14.3 billion lek (€100 mln) affected by a sharp drop in international fuel prices.
With international oil prices standing below $60 per barrel, almost half of their peak June 2014 level, Albania’s oil companies have considerably cut production to handle negative impacts. Meanwhile, garment and footwear products, Albania’s traditional top exports, are suffering this year after growing by around 24 percent in 2014.
In the first quarter of this year, they grew by only 1.3 percent to around 22 billion lek (€153 mln), leading the country’s exports.
The sharp decline in Albania’s exports was saved by exports of construction materials and metals which grew by 37 percent to 10 billion lek (€70 mln) and exports of machinery, equipment and spare parts which almost doubled to 3.6 billion lek (€25 mln).
The decline was also affected by a drop in demand by top trade partner Italy where exports dropped by 15 percent to around 30 billion lek, accounting for 51 percent of total Albanian exports in the first quarter of this year.
Exports to neighbouring Kosovo, the country’s second main destination, seem on track this year when several deals have made trade exchanges easier. INSTAT data shows exports to Kosovo rose by 53 percent to around 4.4 billion lek (€30 mln) year-on-year in the first quarter of this year.
Imports also slightly increased in the first quarter of this year, further widening the country’s trade gap with the export-import coverage ratio at around 50 percent.
Imports of ‘machinery, equipment and spare parts,’ also an indicator of private investments in the country, rose by 22 percent to around 25.4 billion lek (€178 mln) in the first quarter of this year, leading the import list.
A significant drop in international oil and base metal prices is expected to have a negative impact on Albania’s exports which in 2014 registered their lowest growth rate since the onset of the global crisis in 2009.
Experts say the situation is a result of the poor diversification of Albanian exports which mainly rely on energy and garment and footwear products, accounting for 70 percent of total exports.
Albania’s exports suffered a setback in 2014 registering their lowest level since the onset of the global crisis in 2009 affected by poor electricity and oil exports. Data published by state statistical institute, INSTAT, show exports grew by only 3.75 percent in 2014, while imports were up by 6.7 percent, further widening the trade gap in a net importer such as Albania.
Albania’s exports grew by 15.6 percent in 2013, registering growth rates for the fourth consecutive year after the shrink in onset of the global crisis in 2009.
