Albania Economy 2008

Economy - overview:
Lagging behind its Balkan neighbors, Albania is making the difficult transition to a more modern open-market economy. The government has taken measures to curb violent crime, and recently adopted a fiscal reform package aimed at reducing the large gray economy and attracting foreign investment. The economy is bolstered by annual remittances from abroad of $600-$800 million, mostly from Albanians residing in Greece and Italy; this helps offset the towering trade deficit. Agriculture, which accounts for more than one-fifth of GDP, is held back because of lack of modern equipment, unclear property rights, and the prevalence of small, inefficient plots of land. Energy shortages and antiquated and inadequate infrastructure contribute to Albania's poor business environment, which make it difficult to attract and sustain foreign investment. The completion of a new thermal power plant near Vlore and improved transmission line between Albania and Montenegro will help relieve the energy shortages. Also, the government is moving slowly to improve the poor national road and rail network, a long-standing barrier to sustained economic growth. On the positive side, macroeconomic growth was strong in 2003-07 and inflation is low and stable.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$19.76 billion
note: Albania has a large gray economy that may be as large as 50% of official GDP (2007 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):
$11.2 billion (2007 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
5% (2007 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):
$5,500 (2007 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 21.7%
industry: 20.3%
services: 58% (2007 est.)

Labor force:
1.09 million (not including 352,000 emigrant workers) (September 2006 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 58%
industry: 15%
services: 27% (September 2006 est.)

Unemployment rate:
13% official rate, but may exceed 30% due to preponderance of near-subsistence farming (2007 est.)

Population below poverty line:
25% (2004 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 3.4%
highest 10%: 24.4% (2004)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
26.7 (2005)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
3% (2007 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):
23.4% of GDP (2007 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $2.752 billion
expenditures: $3.129 billion (2007 est.)

Public debt:
53.7% of GDP (2007 est.)

Agriculture - products:
wheat, corn, potatoes, vegetables, fruits, sugar beets, grapes; meat, dairy products

Industries:
food processing, textiles and clothing; lumber, oil, cement, chemicals, mining, basic metals, hydropower

Industrial production growth rate:
2% (2007 est.)

Electricity - production:
5.385 billion kWh (2005)

Electricity - consumption:
3.323 billion kWh (2005)

Electricity - exports:
300 million kWh (2005)

Electricity - imports:
371 million kWh (2005)

Oil - production:
7,006 bbl/day (2005 est.)

Oil - consumption:
29,000 bbl/day (2005 est.)

Oil - exports:
1,240 bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil - imports:
21,600 bbl/day (2005 est.)

Oil - proved reserves:
198.1 million bbl (1 January 2006 est.)

natural gas - production:
28.77 million cu m (2005 est.)

natural gas - consumption:
28.77 million cu m (2005 est.)

natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2005 est.)

natural gas - imports:
0 cu m (2005)

natural gas - proved reserves:
814.7 million cu m (1 January 2006 est.)

Current account balance:
-$918 million (2007 est.)

Exports:
$962 million f.o.b. (2007 est.)

Exports - commodities:
textiles and footwear; asphalt, metals and metallic ores, crude oil; vegetables, fruits, tobacco

Exports - partners:
Italy 67.7%, Serbia and Montenegro 5.8%, Greece 5.4% (2006)

Imports:
$3.42 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)

Imports - partners:
Italy 32.1%, Greece 17.7%, Turkey 8.1%, Germany 5.7% (2006)

Economic aid - recipient:
ODA: $318.7 million
note: top donors were Italy, EU, Germany (2005 est.)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$2.084 billion (31 December 2007 est.)

Debt - external:
$1.55 billion (2004)

Market value of publicly traded shares:
$NA

Currency (code):
lek (ALL)
note: the plural of lek is leke

Exchange rates:
leke per US dollar - 92.668 (2007), 98.384 (2006), 102.649 (2005), 102.78 (2004), 121.863 (2003)