Albània: Visió econòmica i política
The country’s trade represents 61% of its GDP and is mostly made with Europe (World Bank, latest data available). The country mainly exports footwear and their parts, suits, bars and rods of iron or non-alloy steel, and cement; while it imports mostly motor cars, petroleum oils, pharmaceutical products and electrical energy.
The European Union remains Albania's main trading partner, as there is a Free Trade Agreement in force with the EFTA states. Italy accounts for almost half of total exports (45.4%), followed by Serbia (12%), Spain (6.1%), Germany (5.9%) and Greece (4.9%). The bulk of imports come from Italy (25.1%), Turkey (9.6%), Greece (9%), and China (8.6% - Comtrade).
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 2020, merchandise exports reached USD 2.5 billion (-7.7% y-o-y), while imports decreased at a slower pace (5.5%), to reach USD 5.5 billion. However, the country is a net exporter of commercial services, which stood at USD 2.4 billion against USD 1.2 billion of imports (-33.9% and -45.5% y-o-y, respectively - data by WTO). In 2020, the external deficit on goods and services stood at 14.7% of the country’s GDP (from 13.6% one year earlier - World Bank, latest data available). Overall, Albanian trade is still hindered by the country’s weak energy, transport infrastructure and limited financial access. According to data from the Institute of Statistics (INSTAT), Albania’s exports surged 35.6% in 2021 (to ALL 369 billion). Meanwhile, imports also surged faster to ALL 801 billion, up 32.3% year-on-year. Thus, Albania’s trade deficit in 2021 stood at ALL 432 billion, up 29.6% compared to 2020.
Foreign Trade Values | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 |
Imports of Goods (million USD) | 5,271 | 5,925 | 5,897 | 5,570 | 7,718 |
Exports of Goods (million USD) | 2,292 | 2,870 | 2,716 | 2,506 | 3,559 |
Imports of Services (million USD) | 1,898 | 2,193 | 2,301 | 1,254 | 1,996 |
Exports of Services (million USD) | 3,193 | 3,574 | 3,743 | 2,474 | 4,094 |
Source: World Trade Organisation (WTO) ; Latest available data
Foreign Trade Indicators | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 |
Foreign Trade (in % of GDP) | 78.2 | 76.8 | 76.3 | 60.0 | 74.5 |
Trade Balance (million USD) | -3,205 | -3,381 | -3,517 | -3,420 | -4,514 |
Trade Balance (Including Service) (million USD) | -1,979 | -2,070 | -2,103 | -2,210 | -2,392 |
Imports of Goods and Services (Annual % Change) | 8.4 | 2.4 | 2.3 | -19.8 | 31.7 |
Exports of Goods and Services (Annual % Change) | 13.2 | 4.0 | 2.6 | -27.9 | 46.5 |
Imports of Goods and Services (in % of GDP) | 46.6 | 45.2 | 45.0 | 37.2 | 43.9 |
Exports of Goods and Services (in % of GDP) | 31.6 | 31.6 | 31.3 | 22.7 | 30.6 |
Source: World Bank ; Latest available data
Foreign Trade Forecasts | 2022 | 2023 (e) | 2024 (e) | 2025 (e) | 2026 (e) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Volume of exports of goods and services (Annual % change) | 11.2 | 2.3 | 1.0 | 4.0 | 3.8 |
Volume of imports of goods and services (Annual % change) | 7.3 | 1.6 | 1.3 | 4.1 | 3.7 |
Source: IMF, World Economic Outlook ; Latest available data
Note: (e) Estimated Data
Main Customers (% of Exports) |
2020 |
Italy | 45.3% |
Serbia | 12.1% |
Spain | 6.0% |
Germany | 5.4% |
Greece | 5.0% |
North Macedonia | 3.3% |
France | 2.1% |
China | 1.9% |
Montenegro | 1.8% |
Czech Republic | 1.7% |
Bulgaria | 1.4% |
Romania | 1.3% |
Türkiye | 1.2% |
United States | 1.1% |
Sweden | 0.9% |
Hungary | 0.8% |
Croatia | 0.7% |
Netherlands | 0.7% |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | 0.7% |
Austria | 0.6% |
See More Countries | 26.1% |
Main Suppliers (% of Imports) |
2020 |
Italy | 25.2% |
Türkiye | 9.6% |
China | 9.0% |
Greece | 9.0% |
Germany | 7.8% |
Serbia | 5.2% |
Russia | 2.3% |
France | 1.9% |
Switzerland | 1.7% |
Spain | 1.6% |
Poland | 1.6% |
United States | 1.6% |
North Macedonia | 1.5% |
Czech Republic | 1.1% |
Bulgaria | 1.1% |
Netherlands | 1.1% |
Croatia | 1.0% |
Austria | 0.9% |
Romania | 0.9% |
United Kingdom | 0.8% |
See More Countries | 39.4% |
Source: Comtrade, 2022. Because of rounding, the sum of the percentages may be smaller/greater than 100%.
Source: Comtrade, 2022. Because of rounding, the sum of the percentages may be smaller/greater than 100%.
To go further, check out our service Import Export Flows.
4.4 bn USD of services exported in 2018 | |
70.06% | |
Personal travelPersonal travel | 58.77% |
14.47% | |
9.80% | |
2.59% | |
1.50% | |
0.48% | |
0.46% | |
0.27% | |
0.23% | |
0.15% |
3.2 bn USD of services imported in 2018 | |
72.87% | |
Personal travelPersonal travel | 56.11% |
Business travelBusiness travel | 16.76% |
10.95% | |
5.04% | |
3.91% | |
3.11% | |
1.40% | |
1.23% | |
1.15% | |
0.34% | |
0.02% |
Source: United Nations Statistics Division, 2023. Because of rounding, the sum of the percentages may be smaller/greater than 100%.
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Actualitzacions: January 2023
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