The state budget control select committee of Estonia’s parliament, the Riigikogu, held an extraordinary session on 8 August 2023 to discuss a controversy over alleged “horse trading” by the Office of the President, ERR reports. Earlier, presidential adviser Toomas Sildam had an informal discussion with Merike Saks, secretary general of the Ministry of Finance, in…
Estonia’s goods exports totalled EUR 4.8bn in the second quarter of 2023, which was down 11% from the same period of 2022, according to Statistics Estonia’s data, ERR reports. Imports totalled EUR 5.6bn, which was down 15% over a year. Estonia’s trade deficit thus stood at EUR 802mn, which was down by EUR 329mn from…
The amount of VAT violations in Estonia doubled in the first seven months of 2023, according to the Estonian Tax and Customs Board (EMTA), BNS reports. EMTA inspected and advised 5,000 companies over the period, resulting in increased VAT obligations of EUR 35.8mn, which is twice as much as a year earlier and EUR 6mn…
Estonia should prioritise trade with free democratic societies, where the political risk is smallest, Estonian MEP Urmas Paet (Reform/Renew Europe), deputy chairman of the European Parliament’s foreign affairs committee, argues. Writing in an opinion piece for ERR, Paet criticised Estonia’s state-run export promotion agency, Enterprise Estonia, for advocating closer economic ties with Vietnam, which has…
The volume of beer produced in the Baltic States declined in 2022, according to data published by Eurostat, LSM reports. Lithuanian breweries produced a total of 329 million litres of beer in 2022, which was down from 334 million litres in 2021. Beer production in Estonia amounted to 134 (145) million litres and in Latvia…
Estonia’s consumer price index (CPI) rose by 6.4% on year in July 2023, according to data from Statistics Estonia, ERR reports. Prices of goods rose by 8.1% and services by 3.1%. The increase in food and non-alcoholic beverage prices accounted for more than half of the total rise in consumer prices. At the same time,…
The Lithuanian parcel locker operator, Omniva LT, has started the construction of a parcel sorting terminal in the Kaunas Free Economic Zone, Baltic News Network reports. The company plans to invest over EUR 40mn in the facility and sorting technology. Omniva LT expects construction to be completed in the second quarter of 2024. The terminal will…
Latvia’s national air carrier, airBaltic, has no plans to buy Estonian airline Nordica, ERR reports. Martin Gauss, CEO of airBaltic, said that the company’s business plan did not foresee any acquisitions. Moreover, the terms of EU aid to the airline did not allow the company to acquire other airlines, he pointed out. Gauss said that…
The chairmen of the foreign affairs committees of the Baltic parliaments — Marko Mihkelson from Estonia, Rihards Kols from Latvia, and Zygimantas Pavilionis from Lithuania — will pay a joint visit to Taiwan, ERR reports. They will meet with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, Legislative Yuan president You Si-kun, Prime Minister Chen Chien-jen, Foreign Minister Joseph…
