Who wins and loses in the new price "war"? - The new price paradox in Albania and the fiscal burden
The growing tensions in the Middle East are having their first ripple effects on the Albanian economy, mainly reflected in hydrocarbon prices.
Beyond the volatility in the markets, this situation is creating a clear picture of winners and losers in the short term. Economic expert Eduart Gjokutaj notes that in this first phase, the government benefits from increased tax collection.
"I would say that this current situation compared in retrospect with similar periods creates a certain fiscal economic paradox. In the short term or in periods of several months, the government naturally wins due to the profitability of taxes and indirect taxes, including those it receives in the form of tariffs, not only from fuel but in general from the price hike that will spread throughout the economy in the medium term."
On the other hand, the hardest hit are sectors that depend directly on logistics and energy. Freight and passenger transport, but also industry and agriculture, are seeing an increase in production costs, which is expected to be transferred to the final consumer.
"As for businesses, they are precisely the ones who are losing out to a large extent, except for those that operate directly as the cost of transport services, whether for passengers or goods, logistics and everything that uses energy products in their daily lives, such as agriculture or certain industries, increases. Of course, it affects citizens who are the bottom line and receive a cost of living that they did not expect and with incomes that lose the magic of growth or indexation."
At the end of this cycle, Gjokutaj assesses that the responsibility once again rests with the executive, which must intervene through subsidies to protect the most vulnerable from the new wave of price increases that is being dictated by global geopolitical developments.
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