Xifres de comerç exterior d'Albània

Foreign Trade in Figures

Albania’s foreign trade represents 82% of its GDP and is primarily conducted with Europe (World Bank, latest data available). According to data by INSTAT, in 2024, the country’s main exports were textile and footwear (28.7%), minerals, fuels, electricity (21.4%), construction materials and metals (18.9%), food, beverages, tobacco (12.6%), and machinery, equipment and spare parts (8.9%); whereas imports were led by machinery, equipment and spare parts (26.7%), food, beverages, tobacco (17.5%), construction materials and metals (13.4%), chemical and plastic products (13.0%), minerals, fuels, electricity (10.4%), and textile and footwear (9.7%).

In terms of countries, in 2024, the main export partners were Italy (43.7%), Kosovo (9.9%), Greece (6.3%), Spain (3.5%), and North Macedonia (3.2%), with imports coming chiefly from Italy (21.2%), followed by China (10.9%), Turkey (10.8%), Greece (7.6%), Germany (7.2%). In 2006, Albania signed the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) with the EU, ratified in 2009, which liberalized trade by reducing duties and non-tariff restrictions on agricultural and industrial goods. The country is also a member of the multilateral Central European Free Trade Agreement (CEFTA) and has signed several free trade agreements.

Albania's trade balance is structurally in deficit, mainly because exports are neither sufficiently diversified nor competitive in terms of price, and because of the country’s narrow production base. In 2023, merchandise exports were stable y-o-y at USD 4.3 billion, while imports increased by 2.5%, reaching USD 8.6 billion. However, the country is a net exporter of commercial services, which amounted to USD 7.2 billion against USD 3.4 billion in imports (+43.3% and +38.3% y-o-y, respectively - data from WTO). According to the World Bank, the country’s trade deficit stood at 5.2% of its GDP, narrowing from 10.3% one year earlier. Data from the Institute of Statistics indicates that Albania's trade deficit for goods increased by 20.7% on the year to USD 5.5 billion in 2024, as imports grew 2.5% against a 15.3% decline in exports.