TIRANA, Jan. 30 – Following international trends, Albania’s central bank is expected to increase its key interest rate later this year, according to the head of Bank of Albania.
Governor Gent Sejko said that BoA is carefully monitoring the situation and will react depending on where inflation stands later this year.
“We are monitoring inflation,” he told local media. “We are at the historical minimum interest rate of 0.5% and depending on inflation we will react.”
Albania’s latest official inflation numbers put it at 3.7 percent, and increasing.
Sejko said he was optimistic the economy would grow by up to 4 percent this year. He added the ongoing unpredictability of the pandemic and rising prices as the main risks economic growth faces.
Sejko’s mandate runs out next month, and it is not clear if he will get another 7-year mandate.
He needs the backing of President Ilir Meta, who has expressed grave concerns over the record public debt and Albania’s economic performance.
