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High prices restrain consumption, imports fall 6%

2022-10-19 08:10:55Biznes SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
High prices restrain consumption, imports fall 6%
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High prices appear to be holding back consumption for many products. According to INSTAT, in the period January - September, imports in quantity fell by almost 6%, compared to the same period a year ago.

Although they have decreased in quantity, imports in value increased by 25%, or about 139.5 (1.2 billion euros) more.

The downward trend in quantity was mainly influenced by the reduction of imports of the group "Mineral fuels, mineral oils and their distillation products", which fell by 16% for the 9th month on an annual basis. The increase in fuel prices turns out to be restraining consumption in the country.

Oil is currently trading at 240 lek, down from 185 lek at the end of February, before Russia's attacks on Ukraine began, leading to a wave of price hikes for many products. Oil is today 30% more expensive than at the beginning of the year.

Fertilizers continue to decline, with a 47% contraction for the 9th month, an indicator of the difficulties the agricultural sector is going through. Sources from the market announced that the removal of subsidies and the imposition of VAT on inputs, combined with the high prices of fertilizers in international markets, made purchases from Albanian farmers unaffordable.

Due to high costs, farmers this season have done less planting both in greenhouses and in the field. In contrast, greens imports for the 9th month have increased significantly in quantity by 44%.

Farmers in the production areas of the country, Lushnja and Berat, say that imports of agricultural products will increase rapidly in the future, since the areas planted in the country have decreased this year and the products that are produced have contracts with export. The gap that remains in the domestic market is being covered by imports.

Cereal imports decreased by 22% for January-September, reflecting a decrease in consumption, which according to operators is also affected by emigration. The latter is becoming a sensitive factor in consumption, according to reports from many sectors, which are feeling the decline in purchasing power due to the lack of people, especially young people.

Coffee continues to decline, with imports of this product falling by around 10%.

Construction is back

While consumption is falling due to high prices and immigration, construction has regained momentum. After the decline in the imports of construction materials in the first part of the year, as a result of high prices, especially iron, more is being imported in recent months. According to INSTAT, pig iron and steel imports increased by 5% for January-September.

It takes more money to buy fewer products

In September, inflation, according to INSTAT, reached 8.1%, the highest level since 1998, when the country was suffering the consequences of the pyramid crisis. The high increase in prices has meant that to buy the same amount of products, or less, you have to spend more.

Although in quantity, imports fell by 6%, in value they increased by 25%, reaching 695 billion ALL (5.8 billion euros). As a result, 139.5 billion lek more (1.2 billion euro) were paid to buy 6% less goods, for the 9th month of 2022, compared to the same period of the previous year.


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