Relocation conducted an analysis of the Albanian housing market in the first half of 2025. In 2025, the market is moving towards normalization after an extremely turbulent period from 2022 to 2024. There are fewer building permits, the growth in construction costs has slowed down, prices in the capital have stabilized, and prices on the coast remain high. The share of deals involving foreigners is close to one in five for the half-year, based on the latest Bank of Albania survey (data for H2’2024), and their investments exceeded €380 million in 2024.
Building permits. In Q1 2025, 258 permits for new buildings were issued (-17% y/y). This is a sign of caution on the part of developers after record years and a factor that will restrain supply in 2025-2026 (we are awaiting data for Q2).
Construction costs. The housing construction cost index (INSTAT) rose by 1.0% y/y in Q1 2025, significantly slower than a year ago (3.4% y/y), which partially relieves price pressure from materials and labor.
Prices: capital vs. coast
According to the Bank of Albania (latest published market survey, H2’2024), about 18% of apartments sold in Albania were purchased by non-residents, of which ≈77% were EU citizens. This is an important benchmark for the first half of 2025: the share of foreigners remains significant, especially in coastal municipalities.
Mortgage loans finance a significant portion of transactions, but the share of cash purchases remains high in resort areas.
Rentals and profitability
Foreign buyers
As for forecasts, supply will grow moderately. As for prices, there will be more stable dynamics in the capital and higher seasonal volatility on the coast. Demand from non-residents will remain strong, especially in coastal locations and rental projects.
Source: http://relocation.com.ua/analysis-of-the-housing-market-in-albania-in-the-first-half-of-2025/
In the first quarter of 2025, foreigners purchased €113.5 million worth of real estate in Montenegro (-21% year-on-year), with citizens and companies from Serbia, Turkey, and the US being the largest buyers, according to data from the Central Bank of Montenegro (CBCG) published by Vijesti.
Ukrainian citizens ranked 11th, along with buyers from Poland and the Czech Republic.
Ranking of countries by purchase volume, Q1’2025
Outside the top ten, Ukraine, Poland, and the Czech Republic are in 11th place (€2.3 million each), followed by Bosnia and Herzegovina (€1.9 million), Canada, and France (€1.4 million each). The geography of the deals covers buyers “from five continents,” the source notes.
According to CBCG, in January-March 2025, the total inflow of FDI into Montenegro amounted to €211 million, of which 54% was accounted for by real estate purchases. Other forms of FDI (investments in companies/banks, intra-group loans) declined. Monstat records a steady increase in prices for new buildings: the average price exceeded €2,000/m²; the coastal region remains the most expensive.
The rating is based on the value of transactions concluded in Q1’2025 according to official statistics from the Central Bank of Montenegro (CBCG) published in Vijesti; the countries and amounts are given in euros. The final annual results are usually published by the CBCG in consolidated reports.
Source: https://t.me/relocationrs/1340
The Ukrainian Business Award is an independent award that recognizes the best companies in Ukraine for their contribution to the economy and society. The winners are selected based on objective data and expert opinions.
The award is a confirmation of Rauta’s leadership in the construction market and its contribution to the development of the Ukrainian economy, as the company continues to operate steadily, introduce new technologies and actively participate in the restoration of destroyed buildings during the full-scale invasion. Since 2022, the company has participated in the reconstruction of the Retroville shopping center, two supermarkets and the Novus logistics terminal, Forum Park Plaza in Kyiv, Pinocchio kindergarten in Bucha, and a truck service station in Odesa.
JSC OTP BANK is on the second place in several July ratings of the Settlement Center for servicing contracts in the financial markets. In particular, in the overall rating of clearing members, among clearing members in the securities market and among clearing members in the repo and foreign exchange swap markets, OTP Bank is the second. This information is published on the website of the Settlement Center. OTP Bank is a leader among banking institutions with foreign capital, and it is also ahead of several state-owned banks.
“In the first seven months of 2025, our individual clients purchased government bonds for a total amount of UAH 7.7 billion in equivalent. Up to 99% of all transactions are conducted in the banking application,” said Valeria Ovcharuk, product owner of OTP BANK.
She reminded that thanks to the OTP Bank UA application, you can invest in government bonds directly at auctions of the Ministry of Finance or buy bonds from the Bank’s portfolio 24/7, from anywhere in the world. “Among our clients, 48% go to auctions on their own, while the rest prefer to buy from the portfolio. There is a large selection, and customers can compare rates, maturities, and interest payment options as if in an online store,” said Ovcharuk.
To learn more about investing in domestic government bonds through the OTP Bank UA app, please follow the link.
The consolidated financial result of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) for January-June 2025 amounted to UAH 51.2 billion, which is 2.4 times less than in the same period of 2024, according to the central bank’s report on its website on Wednesday.
According to the report, the National Bank ended the second quarter of this year with a financial result of UAH 36.4 billion, which is 43.6% less than the financial result of the second quarter of last year.
This decrease in profit is explained by the decline in the result from operations with financial assets and liabilities in foreign currency and monetary gold: in the first half of this year, they amounted to UAH 17.1 billion, compared to UAH 95.7 billion in the first half of last year, including UAH 21.0 billion in the second quarter, compared to UAH 49.7 billion.
“The largest impact on the amount of profit was made by the results of transactions with financial instruments in the amount of UAH 25.6 billion, consisting of recognized interest income on non-resident securities and changes in the fair value of financial instruments and the official exchange rate,” the NBU noted.
At the same time, the central bank emphasized that the consolidated profit reflected in the National Bank’s financial statements is not part of the distributable profit to be transferred to the state budget, which will be determined based on the results of the entire 2025 and published in the spring of 2026. In April and May 2025, the National Bank transferred UAH 84.2 billion to the state budget based on the results of 2024.
The central bank also reported that at the end of the first half of the year, its assets increased by 3% to UAH 2,791 billion. The main changes were due to changes in foreign currency-denominated assets, namely: a 54% increase in SDR assets to UAH 71.8 billion; a 10% increase in foreign currency and bank metal funds and deposits to UAH 534 billion.
As the NBU noted, the volume of international reserves it managed in accordance with its mandate increased by 3% to $45.1 billion at the end of the first half of 2025.
The National Bank’s liabilities at the end of the first half of 2025 amounted to UAH 2,171 billion, which is 1.8% more than at the beginning of the year.
Among other things, the volume of funds of state and other institutions increased by 35% to UAH 375.2 billion; at the same time, the volume of liabilities on loans received from the IMF decreased by 34% to UAH 34.8 billion.
According to the report, as of mid-year, hryvnia funds of budgets and budgetary institutions in NBU accounts amounted to UAH 50.5 billion (UAH 101.4 billion at the beginning of the year), while foreign currency funds amounted to UAH 320.9 billion (UAH 171.9 billion).
In the first half of this year, the National Bank reduced its expenses on deposit certificates by 7.6% to UAH 39.9 billion, although in the second quarter they increased by 6.6% to UAH 21.7 billion.
“The 9% increase in the National Bank’s equity capital in the first half of 2025, from UAH 567 billion to UAH 619 billion, was mainly due to the accumulation of profits in the current year,” the National Bank emphasized.
The final amount of the National Bank’s distributable profit to be transferred by the National Bank to the state budget in 2026 will depend on the actual macroeconomic indicators in 2025 and will be determined after confirmation by an external audit and approval by the National Bank Council of the NBU’s annual financial statements for 2025.
According to the report, personnel expenses in the first half of this year increased by 28.8% to UAH 2.28 billion.
PrJSC Carlsberg Ukraine, a producer of beer, non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverages, increased its production by 8% in 2024, which allowed it to increase its net income from sales by 15.5%.
According to a report in the information disclosure system of the National Securities and Stock Market Commission (NSSMC), Carlsberg Ukraine PJSC’s net financial result for 2024 increased by 19.38% and amounted to UAH 2.2 billion.
“The increase was due to revenue from the sale of all types of products, but mainly from the sale of non-alcoholic beverages (+49.6%) and cider (+33.6%),” the company explained, adding that 96.3% of the products manufactured were sold in Ukraine, with the remaining 3.7% exported.
PrJSC Carlsberg Ukraine continued its operations throughout 2024 and exported its products directly from Ukraine to more than 20 countries around the world. At the same time, the company used 100% Ukrainian barley to manufacture its products in order to support local farmers and the Ukrainian economy.
Currently, beer accounts for 86% of Carlsberg Ukraine’s production, cider for 1%, and non-alcoholic beverages for 13%.
According to the company, as a result of modernization and the launch of new lines, by the end of 2024, its market share by segment within the framework of innovations was as follows: alcoholic beer – 30%, non-alcoholic beer – 42.7%, kvass – 35%, cider – 55.8%, energy drinks – 6%.
PJSC Carlsberg Ukraine referred to data from the industry association Ukrpivo, according to which the company currently holds 33.3% of the market in the “alcoholic beer” category. The sales leaders in the group’s portfolio for 2024 were products under the Lvivske, S&R’s Garage, and Tuborg brands.
Somersby cider and Kvas Taras continue to occupy leading positions in their product categories.
According to the State Fiscal Service, Carlsberg Ukraine PJSC was included in the list of Ukraine’s largest taxpayers in 2024 and paid UAH 3.401 billion to the country’s budgets at all levels in the form of taxes and fees.
The company’s management emphasized that there is only one significant factor of uncertainty that could raise significant doubts about the company’s ability to continue its operations without interruption: a further significant escalation of military action, which could destabilize operations in Ukraine. In such a case, the Ukrainian representative office relies on the parent company having sufficient resources to continue its operations. At the same time, the Ukrainian division has promised to make every effort and take all possible measures to minimize any negative consequences.
According to data from Opendatabot, in 2024, Carlsberg Ukraine PJSC increased its revenue by 15.5% to UAH 12.488 billion, net profit by 19.4% to UAH 2.18 billion, debt obligations by 34.9% to UAH 5.11 billion, and assets by 33.1% to UAH 13.84 billion. The company currently employs 1,310 people.
Carlsberg Ukraine is part of the Carlsberg Group, one of the world’s leading brewery groups with a large portfolio of beer and other beverage brands. Carlsberg Ukraine includes factories in Zaporizhia, Kyiv, and Lviv. Carlsberg’s portfolio in Ukraine includes beer, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages of such brands as Lvivske, Robert Doms, Baltika, Carlsberg, Tuborg, Kronenbourg 1664, Arsenal, Kvas Taras, Somersby, etc.
