Exports "raised their heads" in May after a downward slide in April. From just over 34 billion lek a year earlier, goods worth 35.1 billion lek were sold in foreign markets last month.
The increase is estimated at around 1 billion lek or 1.2%. The main contribution to this performance was made by the export of crude oil extracted from the Patos-Marinza campaign, which expanded by 6.2% in May, reports A2 CNN.
With the exception of food and textiles and footwear, all other product groups are showing declines, confirming that "the export crisis is not over."
"We are not dealing with a turning point. We simply have a group of products, in this case fuel, that has marked a significant expansion and consequently has affected the total weight. But the export crisis continues," said Edison Zaçaj, an expert on the economy.
The opposite happened with imports last month. Despite the increasing number of tourists, goods worth 77.6 billion lek were purchased from abroad. Compared to May of the previous year, the decrease is estimated at almost 3 billion lek.
"We have a consumption crisis which is expected to become even more severe in the future as a result of departures from the country. Tourists are not influencing the expansion of consumption and consequently the expansion of consumption and consequently the promotion of domestic production or imports," said Edison Zaçaj, an expert on the economy.
With exports taking a small turn and imports declining slightly, the trade balance closed negatively for the country last month with a 35 billion lek deficit.
"We continue to have an unpromising balance that risks setting us back a long way in time with a significant trade deficit," he further said.
Last month, Albania exported more products to Kosovo, Greece and Germany. On the other hand, Albanian companies exported fewer products to Italy and North Macedonia. (A2 Televizion)
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