TIRANA, Feb 20 /ATA/ Trade relations between Albania and Kosovo are expanding year by year.
According to the report published by the Institute of Statistics (INSTAT) on foreign trade, exports to Kosovo during January this year reached ALL 2.7 billion, marking a 2-fold increase, compared to the same period of 2021.
Meanwhile, imports marked a slight decrease, reaching ALL 520 million from ALL 539 million in January 2021.
Albania’s main exports to Kosovo include construction materials and metals, minerals and fuels, foodstuffs as well as chemical and plastic products. The highest share in the structure of exports is taken by domestic wood products / furniture such as seats (chairs and armchairs) or other furniture.
Also, agricultural products, such as tomatoes, citrus fruits, melons and cucumbers, account for a high share in the structure of exports.
During this period, referring to the data, Albania has exported to Kosovo minerals, fuels, electricity followed by the group of construction materials and metals. The value of exports of these two groups is estimated at over 900 million ALL respectively.
Also, Albania has exported to Kosovo, chemical and plastic products in the amount of 337 million ALL.
But economic exchanges between the two countries are much broader than just trade flows. They extend to economic exchanges in the tourism industry, financial services, exchanges in the field of education and technology, transport or telecommunications.
The potential is even greater and sustainable for the specialization of economic cooperation and increased competitiveness, through the consolidation of the value chain through cross-sectoral exchanges, in areas such as agro-processing, chemical and cosmetic industries, production of plastic and paper packaging items, processing of metals, etc.
Among the untapped sectors so far, textiles, leather products, machinery, seafood, processed wood products, etc have great potential for trade exchanges. /j.p/sm/
