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Turks "invade" Albania, top the list of foreign investors in our country

2025-09-26 08:25:18Biznes SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
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Turkey and Italy led foreign direct investment for the first 6 months of this year.

According to data from the Bank of Albania, for the first 6 months of the year, investments by companies with Turkish capital reached the value of 89 million euros, although down 39% compared to the same period a year earlier.

Turkish investment stock at the end of June reached 1.3 billion euros, up 12% compared to mid-2024.

Based on the methodologies used to measure foreign investment, new flows are valued at the average exchange rate of the period, while the stock is valued at the exchange rate of the last day of the period. According to the Bank of Albania, the increase in the investment stock is not only related to new flows, but also includes exchange rate changes, price changes and other changes. This means that the stock of foreign investment is revalued periodically, also reflecting the change in the price of assets. For this reason, often the stock of investment for a sector or foreign investor can increase, despite the decrease in new flows.

Turkish companies play an important role in the Albanian economy, especially in the financial sector, the energy sector, the extractive industry, and even construction.

For the first half of the year, Turkey shared the lead in foreign investment with Italy. Italian investments had a total inflow of 89 million euros. Italian investments have decreased by 5% compared to the same period a year ago and are mainly oriented towards service activities.

The Italian investment stock has now reached 1.77 billion euros, up 11% compared to a year earlier.

The Netherlands has fallen to third place among foreign investors since last year. However, this year the value of Dutch investments has returned to growth. For the 6-month period, Dutch investments reached 85 million euros, 39% more compared to the same period a year ago. Meanwhile, the stock of Dutch investments has reached the value of 2.6 billion euros, an increase of 10% compared to the same period a year ago.

Genuine Dutch investors in Albania are few. The most important among them has been the Shell company, which in recent years increased its drilling-related investments in the Shpirag area, before deciding to suspend the works last year.

However, beyond a growing role for Shell, the leadership of Dutch investments in recent years is mainly related to the fact that the Netherlands is one of the preferred countries in Europe to register holding companies, with the aim of controlling the international investments of various business groups.

The fourth largest foreign investor for the 6-month period was Austria, with total investments of 68 million euros, up 36% compared to the same period a year ago.

Austrian investments in Albania are concentrated especially in the insurance market, the energy sector and hotel services.

The stock of Austrian investments reached 862 million euros, up 5% compared to the same period a year ago.

Investments by Kosovo companies have also seen significant growth this year. For the first six months of 2025, they reached a value of 63 million euros, an increase of 50% compared to the same period a year earlier.

The stock of investments from Kosovo reached 485 million euros, an increase of 35% compared to the same period a year ago.

This year, businesses from Kosovo made another major investment in Albania, perhaps the most important one made to date.

The company that owns the largest retail chain in Kosovo, Viva Fresh Store, acquired Spar Albania, the second largest retail chain in Albania, for more than 36 million euros. However, this acquisition was finalized during the third quarter and is not yet reflected in Kosovo's foreign investment figures until mid-year./ monitor


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