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An Albanian family, with an average of 3.6 people spends every month 83.4 thousand ALL to meet its needs for food, drink, electricity, rent, water, clothing, health, telecommunications, entertainment, coffee, lunch, etc.
As in no other country in Europe, about 42% of this amount goes to the purchase of food and alcoholic beverages. The average of the European Union is 13%, while from the countries of the region the highest is in Kosovo, with about 34%.
In value, according to INSTAT, a family spent on average about 35 thousand ALL per month for food and non-alcoholic beverages, with data referring to the Household Budget Survey for 2020 (the latest data available). With food inflation being around 6% in February 2022 (in March it is expected to be much higher as almost every product has become more expensive), a family has to spend at least 2 thousand ALL per month to buy the same amount products. For 769 thousand families in the country, according to INSTAT data, the monthly expenditure on food alone is expected to be at least 1.5 billion, or about 13 million euros more during March.
According to regions, Vlora households spend more on food, with 49.1% of the total (according to INSTAT data for 2019, the latest data available), followed by Dibra (48.2%) and Elbasan (48.1%) and less Korça (39%) and Tirana (36.5%).
Food prices rose sharply in March, following the global problems caused by Russia’s attack on Ukraine. The 30 main items in the basket of goods, including oil and gas, on March 15 were sold 20 percent more expensive than in January this year. The January price list is based on INSTAT measurements available to the public on the official website, while the March 15 prices were taken from retail outlets in the capital that reflected the lowest growth rates.
Higher costs in Europe also for bread and cereals
Albania, one of the poorest countries in Europe, is ranked as the country where its inhabitants spend more on bread and cereals in relation to their income.
According to tables published by the European Institute of Statistics (Eurostat), nominal expenditures on bread and cereals, as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP – which measures the value of final goods and services produced by the economy in a year) were 4.8%, in 2020, the highest in Europe.
The pandemic year has affected the increase of expenditures for this vital product, while in the period 2016-2019, this indicator had decreased to 4.7% of GDP.
The second country after us is Romania, with 4% of GDP, as expenditures for bread and cereals, Montenegro, with 3.9% of GDP, followed by Bosnia and Herzegovina with 3.1% and Macedonia with 3%. Greece, though a country in the European Union, also spends 2.7% of GDP on bread and cereals. Serbia has this lowest indicator in the region, with 2.4% (data for Kosovo are missing).
The average of candidate and potential candidate countries (excluding Turkey and Kosovo) is 3% of GDP, much higher than the average of 1.3% of the 27 European Union countries.
In absolute terms, the average per capita expenditure on bread and cereals is 220 euros per year, the highest in the region, along with Montenegro (266 euros). The lowest level in the region is in Macedonia (157 euros) and then Serbia (164 euros). Developed countries spend more per capita on this product, as it is more expensive, but due to the high income, it does not weigh in their pockets.
High dependence on bread and cereals is also one of the reasons why flour sales reached record highs in recent weeks, as consumers rushed to buy this product for fear that it might become more expensive, or be in short supply in the future./ Monitor
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