High oil prices, citizens increase consumption! - In March 2026, 53.5 thousand tons of fuel were imported
Despite the increase in fuel prices in March 2026, imports and consumption still increased compared to the previous year.
Referring to official data from the General Directorate of Customs, the amount of fuel imported and cleared in March is higher compared to previous months of this year.
On the other hand, an increase is also observed compared to January and February 2026, when prices for this product were normal, signaling an expansion of supply in the market despite external pressures.
Specifically, the data show that in March 2026, a month that brought a significant increase in the price of oil on the market, which reached approximately 224 lek/liter, 53,577 tons of fuel were cleared, with an increase of 2294 tons compared to February, while compared to January 2026, the increase is 2769 tons.
Compared to March 2025, the increase is approximately 1454 tons. What is noticeable from the figures is that even in comparison to March of the last 5 years, starting from 2022, it results that in March 2026 more quantities were cleared.
The increase in imports may be related to several main factors. The first reason may be an increase in supply from importing companies to anticipate instability in international markets, influenced by geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. Second, the increase in demand in the domestic market is also related to the seasonal increase in economic activity, which may have prompted operators to increase the volume of supply. And the third is that despite the price, citizens have not reduced their movements.
If we analyze it as a 3-month period, where a total of 155.6 thousand tons were imported, it turns out that there is a decrease compared to the period January-March 2025, but the first two months of the year, January-February, have an impact in this case.
As for other excise goods, for the month of March, 238 tons of cigarettes were imported, with a decrease of 48 tons compared to March 2025, 729 tons of coffee, which also results in a decrease of 171 tons compared to March 2025. Beer imports have also been reduced, with 3353 tons cleared from 4495 tons in March last year. Even as a 3-month period, apart from cigarettes, other goods show a decrease.
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