Economy, Foreign Trade

In the two decades after World War II, Albania traded almost exclusively with other Communist states, mostly in Eastern Europe. Following a rift with the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) in 1961, Albania shifted most of its trade to China until 1978, when a rift ended relations with China. In the late 1960s Albania renewed some economic ties with Western Europe, and after the fall of Communism, Albania conducted most of its trade with the European Union (EU). Italy is Albania’s most important trading partner, accounting for half of exports and 40 percent of imports. Other leading purchasers of exports are the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Germany, Greece, Turkey, Romania, Bulgaria, and Hungary; sources for imports are FYROM, Germany, Turkey, Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Greece.

In the economic decline following the end of Communist rule both imports and exports suffered, although by the mid-1990s both were again growing, with imports dominant. Exports totaled $260 million in 2000, while imports cost $1.08 billion, leaving Albania with a large trade deficit (the difference between exports and imports). Usually, when a country like Albania has a large trade deficit, it is cause for economic concern, but following Albania’s recession, growing imports were seen as a sign of economic recovery. Imports consist mostly of food and automobiles as well as machinery, industrial equipment, fertilizers, and consumer goods. Exports are mostly raw materials and fuels, including, in order of importance, chrome and chrome products, copper, nickel, furs, tobacco, bitumen, electricity, and petroleum. About 70 percent of all exports now come from the private sector.