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Economy - overview:
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Poor and backward by European standards, Albania is making the difficult transition to a more modern open-market economy. The government has taken measures to curb violent crime and to spur economic activity and trade. The economy is bolstered by remittances from abroad of $400-$600 million annually, mostly from Greece and Italy; this helps offset the sizable trade deficit. Agriculture, which accounts for half of GDP, is held back because of frequent drought and the need to modernize equipment and consolidate small plots of land. Severe energy shortages are forcing small firms out of business, increasing unemployment, scaring off foreign investors, and spurring inflation. The government plans to boost energy imports to relieve the shortages. In addition, the government is moving to improve the poor national road network, a long-standing barrier to sustained economic growth.
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GDP:
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purchasing power parity - $15.69 billion (2002 est.)
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GDP - real growth rate:
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7.3% (2002 est.)
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power parity - $4,400 (2002 est.)
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 49%
industry: 27%
services: 24% (2002 est.)
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Population below poverty line:
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30% (2001 est.)
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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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6% (2002 est.)
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Labor force:
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1.283 million (not including 352,000 emigrant workers and 261,000 domestically unemployed) (2000 est.)
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Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture 50%, industry and services 50%
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Unemployment rate:
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17% officially; may be as high as 30% (2001 est.)
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Budget:
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revenues: $697 million
expenditures: $1.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $368 million (2002 est.)
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Industries:
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food processing, textiles and clothing; lumber, oil, cement, chemicals, mining, basic metals, hydropower
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Industrial production growth rate:
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9% (2000 est.)
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Electricity - production:
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5.289 billion kWh (2001)
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil fuel: 2.9%
hydro: 97.1%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 0%
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Electricity - consumption:
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5.898 billion kWh (2001)
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Electricity - exports:
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221 million kWh (2001)
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Electricity - imports:
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1.2 billion kWh (2001)
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Oil - production:
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5,952 bbl/day (2001 est.)
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Oil - consumption:
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22,400 bbl/day (2001 est.)
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Oil - exports:
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NA (2001)
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Oil - imports:
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NA (2001)
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Oil - proved reserves:
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185.5 million bbl (37257)
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Natural gas - production:
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30 million cu m (2001 est.)
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Natural gas - consumption:
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30 million cu m (2001 est.)
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Natural gas - exports:
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0 cu m (2001 est.)
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Natural gas - imports:
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0 cu m (2001 est.)
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Natural gas - proved reserves:
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3.316 billion cu m (37257)
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Agriculture - products:
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wheat, corn, potatoes, vegetables, fruits, sugar beets, grapes; meat, dairy products
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Exports:
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$340 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)
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Exports - commodities:
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textiles and footwear; asphalt, metals and metallic ores, crude oil; vegetables, fruits, tobacco
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Exports - partners:
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Italy 76.6%, Germany 5.6%, Greece 2.7% (2002)
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Imports:
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$1.5 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
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Imports - commodities:
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machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, textiles, chemicals
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Imports - partners:
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Italy 39.4%, Greece 24.5%, Turkey 6%, Germany 5% (2002)
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Debt - external:
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$784 million (2000)
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Economic aid - recipient:
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ODA: $315 million (top donors were Italy, EU, Germany) (2000 est.)
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Currency:
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lek (ALL)
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Currency code:
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ALL
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Exchange rates:
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leke per US dollar - NA (2002), 143.49 (2001), 143.71 (2000), 137.69 (1999), 150.63 (1998)
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Fiscal year:
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calendar year
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