Where’s the economy going to?

02/08/2014 00:00

Bank of Albania notes that the economy has been revived lately, despite
the many risks. There is no complete report if the growth is coming due
to the economic cycle and seasonal factors, or because the government
has influenced here with some interventions.

The Minister of Economy, Arben Ahmetaj, does not exclude these reasons, but pushes the argument of the new policies brought by the new Socialist government.

“Based on tradition, the first trimester was not expected to be very powerful, but thanks to the work done in the second semester of 2013 with the stabilization of finances, improvement of the business climate and the payment of debts to businesses and the reduced taxes, the revenues of citizens have increased. Although remittances have dropped, consumption marks a growth due to production and increased services.

Besides the risks that were mentioned in the past week by the Bank of Albania, Minister Ahemtaj identified another danger related to the electric power.

“The energetic situation is another risk, a very difficult situation that has been inherited. There have been intensive work for almost one year to improve this situation, and the distribution operator is now preparing for restructuring”.

The Socialist government has based its economic growth program in two basic sources: agriculture and tourism. But these sectors, according to specialized analyzes even from the Bank of Albania, are still unstable.

Arben Ahmetaj says that they are working to stimulate them through fiscal packages.

“The agricultural package that will launch in September will have its effects for the continuity. The signs show clearly that tourism has grown in quantity and quality. These elements will consolidate the economic growth with 2%”, Ahmetaj declared.

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