Revenues from Manufacturing Industry Reached €333 mln in 2017

TIRANA, March 26

Revenues from the footwear and manufacturing sector in Albania during 2017 reached Euro 333 million. According to the recent data unveiled by the Bank of Albania (BoA), revenues from goods’ processing for foreign contractors increased by 13 percent compared to 2016, Scan TV reported.
The footwear and manufacturing sector reflects a strong performance despite the economic problems in their destination markets.
On the other hand, the doubts on the ability of this sector for succeeding in the long term due to competition from countries with lower labor cost are not proving to be true.
The Albanian footwear and manufacturing industry is growing thanks to the geographical location close to the European market, a 25-year experience, and low wages.
Based on the data provided by the Albanian Institute of Statistics (INSTAT), there are 1,300 companies active in the textile and manufacturing industry that produce garments and footwear, mostly for the international market.
The same data confirm that over 45,000 people are employed by this sector while the average gross wage is too low, Lek 30,000. This is one of the lowest wages in the Albanian labor market.

News Source: Scan TV