Latvia’s estimated population totalled 1.883 million people in the beginning of June 2023, according to preliminary data from the Central Statistical Bureau, LSM reports. The number of live births totalled 5,770 in the first five months of 2023, which was 1,022 (15%) less than in the same period of 2022. Altogether 2,966 boys (down 504)…
Estonia’s economic climate index stood at -19.4 points in June 2023, which was down by almost 9 points from March 2023, according to the Estonian Institute of Economic Research (EKI), ERR reports. The economic confidence index, which combines both business and consumer sentiment, stood at 78.7 points, which was significantly worse than the long-term average….
The Baltic States will decouple from the BRELL power grid linked to Russia and Belarus in the beginning of 2025, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas announced, ERR reports. Earlier, Lithuania urged the Baltic States to synchronise their power grids with the continental European system ahead of schedule in 2024. Kallas noted that such a rapid…
The Baltic States will not be able to decouple their power grids from the Russian-controlled BRELL system ahead of schedule in 2024, Rokas Masiulis, CEO of Lithuania’s electricity transmission system operator, Litgrid, stated, BNS reports. He said that the synchronisation process still depended on Estonia’s transmission system operator, Elering, which has said that Estonia will…
Latvia’s Ministry of Agriculture has proposed that a reduced VAT rate on fresh fruit, berries, and vegetables should remain in place in 2024 as well, Baltic News Network reports. The ministry’s report showed that fruit and vegetable farms in Latvia expanded more rapidly than in other EU countries in 2017-2022. At the same time, imports…
Lithuania’s annual inflation stood at 8.2% in June 2023, based on the EU’s Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP), according to the State Data Agency (VDA), Baltic News Network reported. Monthly inflation was 0.1%. Annual inflation calculated according to the national consumer price index amounted to 9% and monthly inflation to 0.1%.
Estonia’s state budget deficit is likely to be smaller than forecast in 2023, the Ministry of Finance announced, ERR reports. In the first five months of 2023, budget revenues increased more than expected due to the rapid growth of wages and rise in prices. Tax revenue was 10% higher than a year earlier. At the…
Senior officials from the Baltic states, Poland, and the European Commission met in Brussels and pledged to accelerate the synchronisation of the Baltic electricity grids with the continental European system, ERR reports. The current deadline for the synchronisation project is at the end of 2025. Timo Tatar, undersecretary of Estonia’s Ministry of Environment, said that…
Latvian consumers are worried the most about the rising prices of utilities, electricity, and food products, according to a Norstat poll for Luminor Bank, Baltic News Network reports. The survey showed that 29% of respondents were worried the most about heating and other utility costs, another 29% about electricity costs, and 24% about food prices….