The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has concluded its Article IV consultation with Albania, and a report published last Friday (11 January) praised the authorities' prudent policies that helped minimise the spillover of the economic crisis in the Eurozone, IHS Global Insight reports.

Nonetheless, the IMF also pointed to a number of dangers and recommended that the authorities address Albania's high public debt, strengthen the banking system, and enhance the investment environment to offset the progressing growth slowdown.

The Fund also noted that the Albanian central bank should closely observe banks' liquidity given their close links to their counterparts in financially-troubled Italy and Greece while also addressing Albania's non-performing loans, which have risen to one fifth of all outstanding loans. With the aim of returning to sustained economic growth, Albania should encourage the development of both domestic and international investment. Recently, the World Bank downgraded Albania in its Doing Business Index by eight places to a rank of 85th worldwide.

Source: bne