Latvia’s retail sector has had no competition, especially in grocery trade, for years, Agriculture Minister Didzis Smits stated, LETA reports. Speaking in an interview with LTV, Smits asserted that retailers could set markups of 300% plus VAT on local produce and still compete, which he said was “abnormal” and “unpatriotic.” He insisted that in such…
Lithuanians are slightly more confident about the country’s economy, according to the latest Eurobarometer poll conducted in June 2023, BNS reports. The survey showed that 56% of respondents regarded the economic situation as bad, which was down 3 percentage points from January-February 2023. By contrast, around 41% of Lithuanians said that the country’s economy was…
Annual inflation in the Baltic States was highest in Estonia in June 2023, according to Eurostat data, LETA reports. Estonia’s inflation rate stood at 9% in June 2023, followed by Lithuania with 8.2% and Latvia with 8.1%. Compared to May 2023, inflation amounted to 0.8% in Estonia. Meanwhile, consumer prices went down by 0.1% in…
Latvia’s Ministry of Agriculture has proposed that a reduced VAT rate on fresh fruit, berries, and vegetables should remain in place in 2024 as well, Baltic News Network reports. The ministry’s report showed that fruit and vegetable farms in Latvia expanded more rapidly than in other EU countries in 2017-2022. At the same time, imports…
Lithuania’s annual inflation stood at 8.2% in June 2023, based on the EU’s Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP), according to the State Data Agency (VDA), Baltic News Network reported. Monthly inflation was 0.1%. Annual inflation calculated according to the national consumer price index amounted to 9% and monthly inflation to 0.1%.
Estonia’s state budget deficit is likely to be smaller than forecast in 2023, the Ministry of Finance announced, ERR reports. In the first five months of 2023, budget revenues increased more than expected due to the rapid growth of wages and rise in prices. Tax revenue was 10% higher than a year earlier. At the…
Latvian consumers are worried the most about the rising prices of utilities, electricity, and food products, according to a Norstat poll for Luminor Bank, Baltic News Network reports. The survey showed that 29% of respondents were worried the most about heating and other utility costs, another 29% about electricity costs, and 24% about food prices….
Estonia’s retail group, Tallinna Kaubamaja Grupp (TKM Grupp), posted unaudited consolidated sales revenue of EUR 460.5mn in the first half of 2023, which was up 11.8% from EUR 411.9mn in the same period of 2022, GlobeNewswire reports. Sales of the group’s supermarkets amounted to EUR 301.7mn (up 6.5%), department stores to EUR 51.7mn (up 6.7%), car…
Average consumer prices in Latvia rose by 7.9% in June 2023, compared to the same period of 2022, according to data from the Central Statistical Bureau, LSM reports. The annual change in prices was mainly influenced by the rise in the price of food and non-alcoholic beverages and of goods and services related to housing,…