Nearly half (45%) of Estonians have seen their financial situation worsen in the past year, according to a Norstat poll for SEB in December 2023, BNS reports. Consumers are therefore cutting back on expenses, including by taking advantage of discounts (62%), planning purchases more carefully (49%), and eating out less often (45%). Other cost-saving measures…
Estonia’s GDP totalled EUR 37.7 billion at current prices in 2023, which was down 3% from 2022, according to data from Statistics Estonia, ERR reported. Robert Müürsepp, national accounts team lead at Statistics Estonia, said that Estonia’s economy was in broad-based recession in 2023, with decline recorded in most major sectors. Information and communication had…
The Baltic States continue to have the highest loan interest rates in the eurozone, according to data from the European Central Bank (ECB), ERR reports. The average interest rate in the three Baltic countries was 5.9% at the end of November 2023. The eurozone average stood at 4.1%. Meanwhile, the average interest on consumer loans…
Latvia’s underground gas storage facility in Incukalns has enough gas for the winter season of 2023/2024, Climate and Energy Minister Kaspars Melnis assured, LSM reports. He said that gas transmission company Conexus Baltic Grid’s storage facility was now filled at 88.6% capacity, which is equivalent to over 20.2 TWh. Melnis noted that Latvia’s gas consumption…
Estonia’s GDP totalled EUR 9.42bn at current prices in the the second quarter of 2023, which was up 5.1% from the same period of 2022, according to data from Statistics Estonia, ERR reports. Real GDP fell by 2.9% over a year, however. Compared to the first quarter of 2023, seasonally adjusted real GDP decreased by…
Estonian consumers made purchases using payment cards, both home and abroad, for a total sum of around EUR 2.5bn in the second quarter of 2023, which was up 5.3% from a year earlier, according to data from the Bank of Estonia, ERR reports. Compared to the first quarter of 2023, card payments rose by 15.2%….
Latvia’s electricity consumption totalled 491 GWh in June 2023, which was the lowest monthly figure since June 2005, according to data from transmission system operator Augstsprieguma Tikls (AST), LSM reports. Electricity consumption declined by 9% over a year and 5% over a month. AST attributed the drop in consumption to the increasing number of microgeneration…
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….