Albania
Retail sales dropped 8.3% y/y in Albania in 2Q20
Albania was under a strict lockdown for the first month of the quarter, with many non-essential businesses closed, and restrictions were gradually lifted during May and June.
Southeast Europeans most likely to die from environment-related factors
Clear divide between west and east of the continent in preventable deaths attributable to the environment. More than a quarter of all deaths in Bosnia linked to environment.
Albania’s annual CPI inflation slows slightly to 1.3% in August
Central bank governor Gent Sejko says the current monetary conditions provide the necessary stimulus to encourage economic growth and for the return of inflation close to the target of 3% by 2022.
The Balkans: External debts in uncertain times
Are countries in the Balkan region taking on more debt than they can afford?
$0.5bn laundered through Albania’s real estate sector in 2019 as drug trade booms
The transit trade in drugs is estimated to be worth more $0.5bn a year in Albania — and a similar amount was laundered through the country’s real estate sector in 2019, says the Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime.