Real estate and rental prices in Estonia have increased the most in the entire EU since 2010, according to Eurostat data, ERR reports. Real estate prices in Estonia have tripled and rental prices have increased by 212% between 2010 and the first quarter of 2023. Average real estate prices in the EU rose by almost…
Estonia’s privately-owned gas company, Eesti Gaas (Elenger), posted revenue of over EUR 1bn in 2022, which was a triple increase from just over EUR 380mn in 2021, ERR reports. Sales of natural gas amounted to EUR 890.2mn (88% of total revenue) and of electricity to EUR 67mn (nearly 7%). Sales in Estonia accounted for 46%…
NATO’s new defence plans for the Baltic region mean that the Estonian people will “no longer have to wait to be liberated” if the country is attacked, Estonia’s Prime Minister, Kaja Kallas, stated, ERR reports. Speaking at the NATO summit in Vilnius, Kallas said that NATO would be ready to fight back immediately, which should…
The Lithuanian fashion retailer, Apranga Group, posted a retail turnover of EUR 147.6mn (including VAT) in the first half of 2023, which was up 15.6% from the same period of 2022, GlobeNewswire reports. Sales in Lithuania amounted to EUR 89.7mn (up 14.8%), in Latvia to EUR 35.0mn (up 14.5%), and in Estonia to EUR 22.9mn…
Estonia’s exports of goods totalled EUR 1.6bn at current prices in May 2023, which was down 15% from the same period of 2022, according to data from Statistics Estonia, ERR reports. Exports of goods of Estonian origin fell by 21% and accounted for 65% (69%) of total exports. Overall imports totalled EUR 1.9bn, which was…
The European Commission’s latest rule of law report urges Estonia to adopt legislation to improve the regulation of political party financing, BNS reports. The report raises concern that there are no transparent and objective rules on the financing of civil society organisations by the Estonian parliament, the Riigikogu, from the state budget. Also, the report…
Due to a budgeting mistake, Estonia’s Ministry of Education and Research will have insufficient funds to finance the transition to Estonian-language education in Russian-language schools in 2024 and beyond, ERR reports. The former government allocated the same amount of funds (EUR 41mn) for switching to Estonian-language tuition for each year in 2024-2026 as for September-December…
Finland’s new defence minister, Antti Häkkänen, visited Estonia’s capital, Tallinn, to meet with his Estonian counterpart, Defence Minister Hanno Pevkur, on 6 July 2023, ERR reported. The two ministers discussed bilateral defence cooperation, regional security, the NATO summit in Vilnius, assistance to Ukraine, and EU defence support. Pevkur said that Finland’s accession to NATO opened…
Inflation continues to fall in Estonia, Rasmus Kattai, economist at the Bank of Estonia, said, BNS reports. Kattai said that the drop was mostly due to the fact that prices for energy and most agricultural commodities were coming down. However, he noted that it took time for the effect of the lower prices to pass…