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Domestic production loses ground, economy increases dependence on imports

Politiko 2026-06-25 13:00:16

Domestic production loses ground, economy increases dependence on imports

The Albanian economy is deepening the trend of orientation towards imports, leaving behind the manufacturing and exporting sectors.

Data for 2025 shows rising inequality, as the number of businesses that rely on imports is increasing at a much faster rate than those that export, causing the trade deficit to worsen.

According to today's INSTAT data, the number of importing enterprises has reached 15,225, marking an increase of 3.3% compared to 2024. In contrast, exporting enterprises reached a number of 3,809 in 2025, or 0.7% more compared to 2024.

The dominance of trading companies, which account for over 63% of the value of imports, has led to the dominance of imports in the economy. Currently, imports account for 71.9% of trade exchanges, while exports remain at a modest level of 28.1%.

The trend shows that Albania is losing ground in its ability to export. In 2025, exports of goods fell to 346 billion lek, a decrease of 6.1% compared to the previous year.

This dynamic has led to a significant widening of the trade deficit. Compared to 2021, the gap between what the country sells and what it buys abroad has worsened by 24.8%. Although the European Union market remains the main partner, both in exports and imports, the figures show a contraction in exports to this region, including the main trading partner, Italy.

Market analysis shows that the economy is concentrated in a limited number of large players, as over half of exports (53.4%) are carried out by just the 50 largest companies. Over half of imports (51.7%) are carried out by the 100 largest companies.

Also, a dependence on supplier diversification is observed, where the dominant businesses are those that import from 10 or more different countries, accounting for 86.4% of the value of imports.

While the "manufactured goods" sector continues to hold the main share of exports, it has suffered a significant decline, while agricultural and machinery exports show growth, however insufficient to balance the country's trade balance. /Monitor

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