Finance Minister Hekuran Murati stated on Friday that, despite the limitations of being a caretaker government throughout last year, the country\u2019s economy performed well, with budget revenues in line with planning and continuous growth in both the economy and employment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Murati noted that the lack of legislative reforms and the delayed ratification of international agreements were limiting factors, but the planned execution of revenues allowed continued support for the private sector, the economy, and households.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At a press conference following the visit of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Mission to Kosovo, the country\u2019s finance chief said that the swift formation of institutions after the December 28 elections is expected to accelerate the parliamentary process for ratifying international agreements and approving the 2026 budget, thus avoiding the risk of running without a budget and losing international funds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAs a caretaker government, we did not have all instruments available, especially legislative reforms and the timely approval of international agreements, but despite these limiting factors, we can consider that the economy performed well, budget revenues were executed as planned, which allowed us, even with limited powers, to continue supporting the private sector, the economy, and households. This resulted in continuous growth in the economy and employment. I also believe that this trend will accelerate, considering the results of the December 28 elections and the quick formation of institutions and the parliament this week. We can now move forward with the ratification of international agreements in the Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo, as well as the annual budget for 2026, avoiding the risks of remaining without a budget or losing funds due to delayed ratification. With ratification, Kosovo will have additional opportunities to further boost economic growth,\u201d<\/em> said Murati.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Governor of the Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo, Ahmet Ismaili, said that the mission discussed the financial sector, economic outlook, and relevant policies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cDuring this mission, discussions focused on the financial sector, economic outlook, and financial sector policies, and we were informed about the commitment and progress achieved in financial stability, economic resilience, and structural reforms, including within the Central Bank. The CBK has continuously advanced reforms to strengthen its governance framework, maintain financial stability, and align regulatory and supervisory frameworks with international standards, especially those of the EU. Kosovo\u2019s economy continues to show stability and positive performance,\u201d<\/em> Ismaili emphasized.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The IMF welcomed the unblocking of the political situation, which coincided with the conclusion of consultations under Article IV.<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to IMF Mission Chief David Amaglobeli, Kosovo\u2019s economy has shown resilience, but political uncertainty came at a cost, slowing economic growth to 3.5 percent by the end of the third quarter last year, compared to 4 percent a year earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Inflation at the end of 2025 reached 5.3 percent, mainly due to rising food prices, while the current account deficit widened to 9.6 percent, driven by high imports, including energy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAfter a prolonged impasse, this is a welcome step, and we were very pleased that it happened during our visit. We just concluded our Article IV consultations, part of the regular annual review of all IMF member states. We shared our findings and policy recommendations with our partner authorities. Regarding macroeconomics, Kosovo\u2019s economy has shown resilience, but political uncertainty came at a cost, slowing growth to 3.5 percent by the end of the third quarter last year, from 4 percent a year earlier. Inflation has also risen slightly, reaching 5.3 percent at the end of 2025, mainly driven by higher food prices. The current account deficit deepened to 9.6 percent, mainly due to high imports, including energy. For 2026, with the easing of the political situation, we expect a better outlook, projecting growth of 3.8 percent, up from 3.4 percent estimated for 2025,\u201d <\/em>he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Regarding fiscal policies, the IMF notes that Kosovo has built a strong track record of fiscal discipline with low public debt. However, the deficit widened in 2025 partly to mitigate the effects of the political impasse, while for 2026 it is expected to reach around 2 percent of GDP.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe expect inflation to reach 2 percent by the end of the year, but we must consider that some risks remain, and policies should be recalibrated accordingly. Regarding fiscal policy, Kosovo has built a strong track record of fiscal discipline in recent years, with a gradually declining deficit and low public debt. In 2025, the deficit widened, partly to soften the negative impact of the political impasse. Based on current policies, we estimate that the 2026 deficit will reach about 2 percent of GDP, which implies a positive fiscal impulse at a time when external balances are expanding and physical reserves need development. We also encourage efforts to expand energy production capacity, including renewable sources, and to improve energy efficiency so that prices align with market conditions,\u201d\u00a0<\/em>he added.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Finance Minister Hekuran Murati stated on Friday that, despite the limitations of being a caretaker government throughout last year, the country\u2019s economy performed well, with budget revenues in line with planning and continuous growth in both the economy and employment. Murati noted that the lack of legislative reforms and the delayed ratification of international agreements […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":80287,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[297,296],"tags":[4079,7515,7512,833,343],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80286"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=80286"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80286\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":80288,"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80286\/revisions\/80288"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/80287"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=80286"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=80286"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=80286"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}