ardian fullani : recent economic developments in albania speech by mr ardian fullani, governor of the bank of albania, at the press conference on monetary policy decision of supervisory council of the bank of albania, tirana, 29 july 2009. * * * the supervisory council of the bank of albania, at its meeting of july 29, 2009, after getting acquainted with the latest economic - financial developments at home and abroad and analysing prudentially the confidence indicators, banking system expectations and forecasts made by bank of albania ’ s staff about eight coming quarters, decided to keep the base interest rate, i. e., the weekly repurchase agreement rate unchanged, at 5. 75 percent. this decision of the supervisory council is based on the following arguments : the economic developments in the first half posed strong challenges to the albania economy. the global crisis affected our economy, swinging the factors and balances that have sustained the economic growth, thus testing the immunity and self - adjusting mechanisms of the economy and raising certain complex questions to economic agents and macroeconomic policies. the economic recession hitting a major part of our trading partners is accompanied by the fall of trade exchanges and of foreign currency inflows. rise of uncertainty in global financial markets has shaken the confidence in the financial system, exerting pressure on the tightening of financial conditions in albania. both these factors are reflected in reduced consumption, exports and investments, leading to economic activity slowdown and exerting pressure on fiscal indicators of budget revenues and budget deficit. on the other hand, the reduction of foreign currency inflows is accompanied by deterioration of the balance of payments indicators and the arising of depreciating pressures on exchange rate, underscoring the role of current account stability on macroeconomic and financial balances at home and the need for taking precautions to guarantee it. world economic environment is characterised by further deepening of economic and financial crises. curtailing of consumption and investments, under the presence of high rates of public and private debt and underlined macroeconomic imbalances, has made the world economy experience the sharpest economic downturn in last 50 years. the developed countries, usa, euro - zone, united kingdom and japan have followed easing monetary and fiscal policies, aiming to hamper the economic downturn and improve the financial and capital markets situation. under their impact, the latest data signal relative improvement signs of some macroeconomic indicators. tensions observed over the previous periods have relaxed and the main financial indicators have shown recovering

society not yet fully served ; considers that the cooperation between us ( the bank of albania and the banks ) remains decisive, particularly regarding the alignment of its legal and regulatory framework with that of the european union ; supports the digital transformation of the banking sector as a trend and an opportunity to improve banking services, making them more accessible and faster for the public, while strengthening at the same time public confidence in regard to the latter ; last, we forecast to advance towards more stable banking practices, by supporting projects that affect positively the environment. in conclusion, on this 25th anniversary, let us renew our commitment to : ( i ) dedication, 3 / 4 bis - central bankers'speeches ( ii ) integrity, and ( iii ) high quality service to the public. despite the achievements and challenges, which will be present over the next years, i am confident that the albanian banking sector will become a synonym of sustainability and innovation. thank you for your commitment and trust in our mutual cooperation. happy 25th anniversary! 4 / 4 bis - central bankers'speeches