Albania’s trade deficit remains high in August: statistics

TIRANA, Sept. 17 (Xinhua) — Albania’s trade deficit in August reached 46.4 billion Albanian lek (around 520.1 million U.S. dollars), up by 15.6 percent year-on-year, the country’s Institute of Statistics said on Tuesday.
The value of exports fell by 18.2 percent in August to 22.5 billion lek, while imports rose 1.9 percent to 68.9 billion lek. Weak overseas demand and the strong value of the lek continue to affect foreign trade negatively.
In the first eight months of 2024, exports dropped 14.9 percent to 255.1 billion lek, primarily due to declines in sectors such as minerals, fuels, electricity, textiles, footwear, construction materials, and metals.
Italy remained the top destination for Albanian exports in the first eight months, with shipments totaling 111.5 billion lek, a 13.2 percent decrease compared to the previous year.
Exports to China meanwhile showed year-on-year growth, rising from 5.7 billion lek to 7.4 billion lek in the January-August period. (1 Albanian lek = 0.011 U.S. dollar) ■