EC Confirms Albania’s 2017 Economic Growth Projections by 3.5%

TIRANA, February 15

The European Commission (EC) says that the economic situation in Albania is gradually improving. Therefore, it raised its projections for Albania’s GDP growth for 2018 to 3.6 percent. It is driven by consumption expenditure and private investments.
It is expected that monetary policies, improvements to the labour market, and foreign direct investments are the main factors that will encourage investments and consumption expenditure.
The EC report says that the fiscal deficit and the public debt ratio are projected to decline, but government’s commitments on fiscal consolidation might be tested by the upcoming elections and the end of the agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Regarding economic projections for 2017, the EC says that it expects an increase to 3.5 percent while its forecast for 2018 is 3.6 percent.
Meanwhile, speaking about risks the European Commission highlights: “Increased political uncertainty related to the parliamentary election in June 2017 might dampen consumption and investments.”
Moreover, it points out that the justice Reform may improve the business climate and encourage economic growth. The major risk is fiscal consolidation, which is related to June elections.
“The government may facilitate monetary policies before the elections,” the report says.
The same warning was made by Standard and Poor’s in the recent assessment by Standard and Poor’s in early February.

News Source: Scan TV