"Made in Albania" exports marked a positive performance during October. According to the Institute of Statistics, exports in October increased by nearly 14% compared to the same month of 2016.
In ten months, Albanian exports reached Lek 225 billion, 13% higher than the 10-month period last year. Textile and shoe group remains the main export column, accounting for 43% of the total value. Exports of this group increased for October as well, at 13%.
Meanwhile, this year�s growth is also supported by the positive performance in the �construction materials and metals� group. Exports of this group increased by 39% over the same period of last year. The other important group accounting for the export performance in recent years �Minerals, fuels, and energy� is still not in the condition of a genuine rejuvenation.
Exports of this group for the 9-month period showed a slight increase year-on-year.
Meanwhile, imports grew at even higher rates than exports, resulting in the expansion of the country�s trade deficit. For October, imports increased by 15% annually.
In ten months, Albania imported goods worth Lek 510 billion, up 8% year-on-year.
The growth in imports seems to be stable and spread across almost all the group, pushing the country�s trade deficit to rise. For October, the trade deficit increased by 15%, while the 10-month deficit in freight exchange reached Lek 284 billion, up 3.3% compared to the same period of 2016. According to the Institute of Statistics, �Construction materials and metals� group top the list of increased exports with +5.1 %. The group of �textile and footwear� had an impact of 4.3%. During this period, the countries with which Albania had the greatest increase of exports as compared to last year are: Italy, Kosovo and Greece. While, export to the Netherlands, Switzerland and Croatia got reduced.