External trade aggregate of Albania 1920-1964
Data becomes available again after the Second World War, and is shown in Albanian Lek. From here until the mid-1960s, Albania became a satellite state and dependency of the Soviet Union (as tensions rose with neighboring Yugoslavia), although relations frayed in the wake of Stalin's death in 1953. At the end of the 1950s, Albania played a surprisingly large role in the Sino-Soviet split; as both sides attempted to curry favor with as many communist countries as possible. Albania eventually split with the Soviets in 1961 and sided with Mao Zedong's China; this transition is one explanation for the trends shown in the final years of the data.