Housing affordability in Baltic States improved slightly in Q4 2023, according to Swedbank representatives. In Riga housing affordability index (MP) reached 147.6. This value means the income of households whose income meets 1.5 average net monthly wage amount in Riga and that want to acquire a 55-square meter apartment was 47.6% higher than necessary to…
Following the reconstruction of the railway section Gaiziunai-Kaisiadorys, the Vilnius-Riga train will be able to run faster on this section and will make additional stops in Lithuania’s Jonava and Kedainiai, Lietuvos Gelezinkeliai (Lithuanian Railways, LTG) has said in a press release. According to LTG, the journey time will not change after adding more stops. The…
Inflation in Estonia seems to be running higher than is the case in Latvia and Lithuania, SEB Pank analyst Mihkel Nestor says. Inflation in Estonia ran at 4.2% YoY in February, a significant rise, though between January and February, perhaps a more useful comparison than the year-on-year, derivative-of-a-derivative figure, there was little change. Nestor pointed…
Latvia’s national airline Air Baltic has offered the Lithuanian and Estonian governments to buy its shares, the Estonian Postimees news website has reported. Martin Gauss, the company’s board chairman, said he had met Lithuanian Transport Minister Marius Skuodis and Estonian Climate Minister Kristen Michal and briefed them on Air Baltic’s initial public offering (IPO) plans.…
Amid sanctions related to the war in Ukraine, Latvia has become Russia’s primary whisky supplier. This booming trade relationship has a complex web of diplomatic tightropes with economic and geopolitical nuances. Latvia, one of the European Union’s smallest member states with a population of fewer than 2 million, has emerged as the number-one supplier of…
Baltic railways can achieve faster development through joint efforts, says Latvian Railway (LDz) board chairman Rinalds Plavnieks. This week there was a meeting of three Baltic States Railway and European Railway Infrastructure Managers Association “RailNetEurope” work group. During this meeting, participants addressed topics relevant for the development of the Baltic railway network. Plavnieks explained that…
Only five out of 24 Baltic banks commit to net zero. It is time for the rest to step up, argue Vaida Arlauskaite and Monika Aleksiejute-Jonusauskiene of the consultancy Viridis Sustainability. Climate action is becoming crucial for all European financial institutions due to the rising influence of global frameworks like the Paris Agreement and regional…