Topic
World
Business | Europe
Online | Europe
Business | Latvia
Economy - overview:
Latvia's transitional
economy recovered from the 1998 Russian financial crisis, largely due to
the government's budget stringency and a gradual reorientation of exports
toward EU countries, lessening Latvia's trade dependency on Russia. The
majority of companies, banks, and real estate have been privatized, although
the state still holds sizable stakes in a few large enterprises. Latvia
officially joined the World Trade Organization in February 1999. EU membership,
a top foreign policy goal, came in May 2004. The current account and internal
government deficits remain major concerns, but the government's efforts
to increase efficiency in revenue collection may lessen the budget deficit.
A growing perception that many of Latvia's banks facilitate illicit activity
could damage the country's vibrant financial sector. |
Agriculture
grain, sugar beets, potatoes, vegetables;
beef, pork, milk, eggs; fish
Airlines
Airlines
in Europe
Airlines
Worldwide
Airports
Airports
in Europe
Airports
Worldwide
Country Budget
revenues: $4.231 billion
expenditures: $4.504 billion, including
capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)
Currency (code)
Latvian lat (LVL)
Currency Exchange Rate
lati per US dollar - 0.5402 (2004),
0.5715 (2003), 0.6182 (2002), 0.6279 (2001), 0.6065 (2000)
Fiscal Year
calendar year
GDP (Gross Domestic Product)
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$26.53 billion (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 7.6%
(2004 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing
power parity - $11,500 (2004 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 4.4%
industry: 24.8%
services: 70.8% (2004 est.)
Imports / Exports
Exports: $3.569 billion f.o.b.
(2004 est.)
Exports - commodities: wood
and wood products, machinery and equipment, metals, textiles, foodstuffs
Exports - partners: UK 12.8%,
Germany 12%, Sweden 10%, Lithuania 9.1%, Estonia 8%, Russia 6.4%, Denmark
5.4% (2004)
Imports: $5.97 billion f.o.b.
(2004 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery
and equipment, chemicals, fuels, vehicles
Imports - partners: Germany
13.9%, Lithuania 12.2%, Russia 8.7%, Estonia 7%, Finland 6.3%, Sweden 6.1%,
Poland 5.4%, Belarus 4.8% (2004)
Industries
buses, vans, street and railroad
cars, synthetic fibers, agricultural machinery, fertilizers, washing machines,
radios, electronics, pharmaceuticals, processed foods, textiles; note -
dependent on imports for energy and raw materials
Investing
Forex,
Foreign Exchange Market: Currency Trading
Labor Force & Unemployment Rate
Labor force: 1.17 million
(2004 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 15%, industry 25%, services 60% (2000 est.)
Unemployment rate: 8.8% (2004
est.)
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