Based on data published by the Bank of Albania, Open Data Albania is analyzing the origin of the Foreign Direct Investment Stock in the country. The FDI’s stock represents the value of assets owned by foreigners in the Albanian economy, in the form of capital and net loans they have given to resident companies at a certain point in time. FDI is an inflow into the Balance of Payments and therefore, an important indicator of national economic growth.
Source: Bank of Albania
Comments and Analyses: Open Data Albania
This indicator has been growing year after year since 2014, reaching an overall value of 9.54 billion Euros at the end of 2021. The later is 12% higher than that of 2020 and 2.1 times higher than 2014. So, the FDI stock indicator in Albania has doubled in eight years time frame.
18% of the FDI’s stock of 2021 is of Swiss origin with a value of 1.76 billion Euros. Investments originating from Switzerland, have increased gradually year after year, and if we compare it with 2014, this figure is 21 times higher in 2021.
Source: Bank of Albania
Comments and Analyses: Open Data Albania
Source: Bank of Albania
Comments and Analyses: Open Data Albania
Source: Bank of Albania
Comments and Analyses: Open Data Albania
The Netherlands is the second country with the biggest stock of FDI’s in 2021, followed by Canada and Italy, countries that have stocks worth over 1 billion Euros.
Source: Bank of Albania
Comments and Analyses: Open Data Albania
The FDIs stock from countries neighboring to Albania in 2021 is 257 million Euros from Greece, 139 million Euros from Kosovo, 62 million Euros from Northern Macedonia and 2.7 million Euros from Montenegro.
If we look at countries experiencing pronounced fluctuation in value or percentage, it turns out that countries like Greece, Panama, Kuwait have rettracted their investments from the country. Meanwhile, there has been a marked interest in increasing investments in 2021 from the US and estern countries such as Hungary, Bulgaria, Germany, Czech Republic, Kosovo, etc. However, the increased value of investments may need to be assessed on a case by case basis, as it might simply be an increase in the revelation of the real origin of the assets in the country. In 2021, the country began to implement the legislation for the declaration of the final beneficiary (holder) and it has led to a complete clarification of the origin of the holder. Business companies registered in countries with a shell business register, for which the Identity and Origin of the Final Owner were not previously known, are now compelled by law to declare the complete Share Control Package. As a result, this year, many Foreign Direct Investments registered with an initial origin to fully disclose the real origin of all direct and indirect shareholders. That is why statistics show an increase in assets for some countries; rather than rising investments, it is because of a renewed classification in the origin of ownership.
Source: Bank of Albania
Comments and Analyses: Open Data Albania
The Kuwait, Cayman and Virgin Islands (UK) negative values of Foreign Direct Investments Stock are also interesting to examine. It would seem that Albania has investments in these countries, causing the outflow in the Balance of Payments to be higher than the inflow.
Download excel:Foreign Direct Investment Stock’s Origin in Albania 2021Comments and Analysis: Open Data Albania
Contributed by: Griselda Ruci
Translated by: Rezarta Caushaj
