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…
Food prices in Latvia will grow by less than 4% in 2024, Ieva Opmane, economist at the Bank of Latvia, forecast, LSM reports. The price hike will be higher than average inflation but much less than in 2023 and 2022, she said. The rise in food prices will depend on consumer income, energy prices, harvests,…
The number of new layoffs in Estonia totalled 3,500 in 2023, which was 22% more than in 2022, according to data from the Estonian Unemployment Insurance Fund (Töötukassa), ERR reports. Around a third of those laid off were formerly employed in the manufacturing and another third in transport and storage. The biggest number of layoffs…
The chairmen of the foreign affairs committees of the Baltic parliaments, Estonia’s Marko Mihkelson, Latvia’s Rihards Kols, and Lithuania’s Zygimantas Pavilionis, praised Taiwan’s presidential and legislative elections held on 13 January 2023, LSM reports. In a joint statement, they said that the elections demonstrated the strength of Taiwan’s “robust democratic system,” saying that the country…
Housing prices more than tripled in Estonia between 2010 and the third quarter of 2023, rising by 210%, according to Eurostat data, LSM reports. Meanwhile, housing prices more than doubled in Lithuania (up 158%) and Latvia (up 141%) over the same period. The increase in rents was the EU’s highest in Estonia (up 218%) and…
Housing prices in the Baltic States rose the fastest in Lithuania in the third quarter of 2023, according to Eurostat data, BNS reports. Housing prices rose by 8.7% over a year in Lithuania, 3.8% in Estonia, and 3.2% in Latvia. Compared to the second quarter of 2023, housing prices rose by 2.4% in Lithuania, but…
Latvia supports prohibiting the import of Russian grain but will not impose a unilateral ban, parties in the coalition government announced, LSM reports. Instead, Latvia calls on EU member states to agree on a common position on the issue. At the same time, the government is instructing ministries to assess the impact of such a…
Estonia will issue 10-year bonds for EUR 1bn to cover the state budget deficit in 2024, ERR reports. Sven Kirsipuu, deputy secretary general of the Ministry of Finance, said that the bond issue would cover about half of the state’s borrowing needs in 2024. Preliminary indications suggested that investor interest in Estonian bonds remained strong,…
Latvia’s registered unemployment level stood at 5.7% of the economically active population at the end of 2023, which was down from 6.1% at the end of 2022, according to data from the State Employment Agency (NVA), LETA reported. The number of registered unemployed totalled 50,344 at the end of 2023, which was down from 53,536…