Estonia’s ruling coalition parties have agreed to boost Estonia’s economic competitiveness by developing new industries and focusing on nationwide development, ERR reports. The three parties aim to reduce bureaucracy and use EU funds and CO2 money for industrial growth. The coalition plans to distribute subsidies for large investments across Estonia to raise wages and improve…
Latvia ranks highest in the Baltic States in achieving the UN’s sustainable development goals, according to the UN’s Sustainable Development Report 2024, LSM reports. Latvia ranked 13th in the sustainable development index, which was up from 14th place in 2023. Estonia ranked 15th, while Lithuania was on 31st place. Latvia’s overall score on the index…
Traffic on roads in Estonia reached a new all-time record in 2023, according to data from the Estonian Transport Administration (Transpordiamet), ERR reports. The total volume of vehicle mileage amounted to 11.9bn km in 2023, which was up 2.4% from 11.6bn km in 2022. Passenger cars accounted for 72.3% of the total mileage, followed by…
Amid rising incomes and optimism about their financial situation, Lithuanians are spending more on food and non-essentials but are increasingly reluctant to dine out due to high restaurant prices driven by rising labour costs and the expiration of pandemic-era tax breaks, LRT reports. While supermarket food sales are boosting economic growth, restaurant turnover has fallen…
The number of poor people in need of assistance in Latvia has been decreasing in recent years in the regions of Kurzeme and Latgale, but has increased in the capital, Riga, according to the state-run Society Integration Foundation (SIF), LSM reports. More than 20% of all poor and low-income people received food aid and basic…
Slowing inflation and strong wage growth in Estonia have increased people’s purchasing power, according to the Bank of Estonia, BNS reports. In June 2024, the consumer price index rose by only 2.5% on year, which was the slowest rate in three years, primarily due to falling energy prices. At the same time, most services have…
Tax-free income in Estonia totalled EUR 4.15bn in 2023, according to the Ministry of Finance, ERR reports. In 2023, the tax-free income threshold was EUR 704 per month for pensioners and EUR 654 for working-age individuals. The ministry does not have a current forecast on the amount of tax-free income in 2024. Former prime minister…
House prices in the Baltic States rose the most in Lithuania in the first quarter of 2024, according to Eurostat data, LSM reports. Compared to the first quarter of 2023, house prices increased by 9.9% in Lithuania, 7.8% in Estonia, and 3.7% in Latvia. Compared to the fourth quarter of 2023, house prices went up…
Estonia needs to discuss the possible introduction of tuition fees in higher education, Toomas Asser, rector of the University of Tartu, stated, ERR reports. He said that maintaining the quality of education with state budget funds only was becoming unsustainable, noting that even affluent countries struggle to fund high-quality education exclusively with public funds. Asser…