TIRANA, March 10 /ATA/ Governor of the Bank of Albania Gent Sejko held an online meeting with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Mission in Albania represented by Yan Sun, Head of Mission.
The discussions focused on performance of the Albanian economy, the impact of the pandemic on economic performance and expectations for economic recovery.
Governor Sejko said that during the first half of 2020 the Albanian economy has been under the strong effect of pandemic and unfavorable foreign environment, however economic activity in the country has shown recovery trends in the second half of the year.
Regarding the banking sector in the country, the Governor stressed that it is well-capitalized, solid and with good indicators of liquidity and financial health.
Governor Sejko added that financial markets have continued to function normally. “The exchange rate is stable, interest rates remained close to their historical minimums; and lending has increased. In particular, the ratio of non-performing loans dropped to 8.1% at the end of December, a level close to the historical minimum of the last decade “, said Sejko.
Representatives of the International Monetary Fund assessed that the monetary policy stance has been and remains appropriate, providing the necessary incentives to stimulate economic growth. Also, the contribution given by the Albanian authorities in managing the pandemic in the economy, especially through the harmonization of fiscal and monetary policy, has contributed to maintaining the macroeconomic stability of Albania and creating conditions for the resumption of economic recovery.
The Bank of Albania and the representatives of the International Monetary Fund shared the same forecasts regarding the economic outlook and the performance of GDP, which is expected to gradually recover in 2021 and 2022, where one of the sectors expected to have a high contribution to this direction is that of tourism. However the pace of recovery will depend on the evolution of the pandemic and the speed of vaccination of the population./p.s./
