TIRANA, Aug 7 /ATA/ Inflation of consumer prices declined over the second quarter, standing close to 2.1% average.
This performance was almost underpinned by the fall of inflation in food items, particularly of fruits and vegetables, while inflation in other basket items was overall stable, though slightly trending downwards.
This is what the Governor of the Bank of Albania, Gent Sejko, stated today at the media conference, where he emphasized that “inflation is expected to stay close to the current levels for the rest of the year and return to the target during the first half of next year”.
Sejko said that from the macroeconomic perspective, the fall in inflation, in the second quarter, has reflected the fast reduction in imported inflation, while domestic inflationary pressures appear more stable.
Imported inflation inched down as the exchange rate strengthened while inflation declined in our trading partners.
In particular, inflation in food items slowed down rapidly in Albania in parallel with a similar performance across international markets, suggesting a reflection of a positive supply-side shock. On the other part, the solid demand for goods and services coupled with the relatively fast growth in wages and production costs underpinned the build-up of domestic inflationary pressures.
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