The shadow economy accounts for up to 90% of the car service sector in Latvia, which has completely distorted competition, Andris Kulbergs, board chairman of the Latvian Automotive Association (Auto Asociacija), told LETA. The total turnover of the shadow economy in the sector amounts to almost EUR 200mn per year, the association estimates. The state…
Latvian MEP Vilis Kristopans of the opposition Latvia First (LPV) party will join the far-right Patriots for Europe group in the European Parliament, LETA reports. The group includes many members who are sympathetic towards Russia. Kristopans expects that the number of members in the group will continue to grow. Kristopans served as prime minister of…
The volume of transit shipments of cereal products from Russia via Latvia totalled 994,726 tonnes in the first half of 2024, which was up 39.3% from 714,097 tonnes in the same period of 2023, according to data from the State Revenue Service (VID), LETA reports. Wheat and maslin accounted for 598,705 tonnes of the total…
Czech company Skoda Vagonka pledges to deliver the remaining seven new electric trains to Latvia by the end of July 2024, LETA reports. The company assured that production was proceeding on schedule. Latvian passenger train operator Pasazieru Vilciens (Vivi) has so far received 25 of the 32 new electric trains ordered from Skoda Vagonka. Vivi…
Consumer prices in Latvia rose by 1.4% in June 2024, compared to the same month in 2023, according to data from the Central Statistical Bureau of Latvia (CSP), LETA reports. Compared to May 2024, consumer prices dropped by 0.1%, however. Average prices in a 12-month period rose by 1.9% when compared to the previous 12…
Latvia’s state-owned postal services provider, Latvijas Pasts, has submitted a new tariff plan for universal postal services to the Public Utilities Commission (SPRK), LETA reports. The company plans to raise tariffs on the domestic delivery of letters, parcels, and press publications as well as for cross-border postal services as of 2025. Latvijas Pasts said that…
The Latvian government made a decision in 2015 to include international railway stations at Riga Central Station and Riga International Airport (RIX) in the Rail Baltica project, according to the Ministry of Transport, LETA reports. The then government approved a plan to build the project’s most complex objects first so that they would be available…
Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics is emulating former president Vaira Vike-Freiberga by seeking support directly from society, rather than relying on political elites, according to political analyst Filips Rajevskis, LETA reports. Rajevskis notes that Rinkevics is positioning himself as a mediator between citizens and the political elite. Although his role lacks direct power, the president’s extensive…
China’s Special Representative on European Affairs, Wu Hongbo, has paid a visit to Latvia, LETA reports. Wu met with Dace Melbarde, parliamentary secretary of Latvia’s Foreign Ministry, and Katarina Platere, head of the ministry’s bilateral relations directorate. The officials discussed bilateral dialogue, cooperation in specific sectors and international organisations, and regional security. The Foreign Ministry…