Albanian GDP grows 3.3 pct in third quarter of 2014

 

TIRANA Fri Jan 9, 2015 

Jan 9 (Reuters) - Albania's economy grew at an annual rate of 3.3 in the third quarter in real terms, after shrinking 0.37 percent in the second quarter, fuelling hopes economic expansion would reach 2.1 percent in 2014, its target for the year.
The Institute of Statistics also said on Friday that gross domestic product grew 1.38 percent in the nine months of 2014. It also estimated GDP grew 0.68 percent in the third quarter over the second quarter of 2014.
Albania's goal is GDP growth of 2.1 percent in 2014 and 3 percent in 2015, much lower than the 6 percent or so it saw annually from 2000 until the financial crisis in 2008. Growth in 2013 was just 1.39 percent.
The Institute of Statistics also revised to 1.42 percent from 1.7 percent annual growth in the first quarter of 2014. It revised its estimate of a contraction in the second quarter to 0.37 percent from 0.6 percent, compared with the second quarter of 2013.
The tourist segment -- trade, hotels and restaurants -- led the gains in the July to September quarter, the peak of the tourist season. The segment expanded 10.41 percent from the same period last year and added 1.71 percentage points to the overall growth.
Construction grew at an annual 7.53 percent in the quarter, after a slump of 22 percent in the second quarter. The decline was attributed to heavy spending on infrastructure before elections in the second quarter of 2013.
Only transport recorded a fall, of 24.07 percent, in the third quarter from the same period in 2013. (Reporting By Benet Koleka; Editing by Larry King)