Albania’s IT Market To Expand by Avg Annual 3.1% in 2009-2013 to $136.4 Mln

"In the context of the global economic crisis, IDC expects that the IT market in Albania to decline sharply in 2009 and remain flat in 2010. By 2011, the crisis will slowly begin to recede, the country will gradually attain positive GDP growth, and the IT market will return to solid annual growth rates," IDC Adriatics Managing Director Boris Zitnik said in a statement posted on the company’s website.

Albania’s IT market grew by 31.4% year-on-year to $117.25 million in 2008, IDC said.

IDC previously forecast that the IT market in Albania would grow by an average annual 17.8% through 2011 to $100 million.

Software shipments rose by 73.2% in 2008, IT services grew by 70.7%, while hardware shipments grew by 21.2%, which was below the market average.

IT services increased their share of the total market to 15.3% in 2008, software grew to 10.9%, and hardware's share fell slightly to 73.8% of the total.

($=0.6905 euro)