The Estonian government has issued EUR 1bn worth of bonds to cover the state budget deficit and to provide more liquidity, ERR reports. The bonds mature in May 2036 and carry a yield to maturity of 3.609%. More than 100 investors, mostly banks, pension funds, and European investment funds, subscribed to over EUR 2.2bn in…
Lithuanians tend to work the least in the entire EU during weekends, according to Eurostat data, LSM reports. The share of all employed people aged 15-64 years who usually work on weekends was just 3.9% in Lithuania in 2025. By comparison, the share of employed people usually doing weekend shifts was 13.1% in Estonia and…
The Council of Europe’s advisory body on constitutional law, the Venice Commission, urged the Lithuanian parliament, the Seimas, to improve draft amendments to the law governing the country’s public broadcaster, Lithuanian National Radio and Television (LRT), BNS reports. The commission said that the draft law may violate the European Convention on Human Rights and the…
Latvia’s industrial production output increased by 9.2% in the first quarter of 2026, compared to the same period of 2025, according to the Central Statistical Bureau’s (CSP) calendar-adjusted data at constant prices, LSM reported. Output rose by 1.0% in manufacturing and by 40.6% in electricity and gas supply, but fell by 30.7% in mining and…
Estonia’s industrial production declined by 3.1% at constant prices in March 2026 compared to the same period of 2025, according to Statistics Estonia, ERR reports. Output increased by 5.9% in mining, but decreased by 19.5% in energy production and by 1.2% in manufacturing. In the manufacturing sector, output in wood processing rose by 5%, fabricated…
The prison population per capita in the Baltic States is the highest in Latvia, according to Eurostat data, LSM reports. Latvia had 187 prisoners per 100,000 people in 2024, which was up 8% from 173 in 2023. The figure was the third-highest in the entire EU. Lithuania’s prison population stood at 155 (159) and Estonia’s…
Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia will visit Lithuania on 18 May 2026, the Swedish royal court announced, BNS reports. The royal couple will meet with President Gitanas Nauseda and representatives of local organisations supporting Ukraine. Also, Queen Silvia will inaugurate a new nursing hospital in Vilnius. The last time that the Swedish…
The Latvian government will have to decide on additional capital needed for the country’s national air carrier, airBaltic, in 2026, Finance Minister Arvils Aseradens stated, LETA reports. He stressed that the airline’s future operations required capital investment. However, the government would have to seek additional sources of funding for such an investment, the minister explained….
Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal suggested that former president Kersti Kaljulaid could be nominated as a candidate in presidential elections due in September 2026, ERR reports. Michal noted that incumbent president Alar Karis did not seem to have sufficient support in the parliament, the Riigikogu, to be reelected for a second term. Earlier, Lauri Läänemets,…