Articles of Interest
Latvia Aims to Return to International Capital Markets
By admin at 29 March, 2011, 11:49 am
Latvia is aiming to return to international capital markets as early as May as the Baltic state continues to rebuild its economy after the worst downturn of any country during the financial crisis, the country’s finance minister said. “It is very important to turn back to the capital markets,” Finance Minister Andris Vilks told Dow [...]
Read More >>Baltic Pain Turns to Growth While Protests Mean No Greece Gain
By admin at 22 March, 2011, 6:47 pm
Allan Martinson, managing partner of Estonian private equity company MTVP, saw Baltic companies he invested in cut spending as much as 30 percent starting in 2008 to cope with Europe’s worst recession. They all survived, even as their earnings plunged in part because of government austerity measures. Now that Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania are growing, Martinson is [...]
Read More >>Latvia’s 2012 Budget Cuts May Be Lower on Economy, Ir.lv Says
By admin at 9 March, 2011, 7:43 pm
Latvia may have to find less than half the savings in its 2012 budget than forecast to meet the terms of its international loan as the economy recovers, Finance Minister Andris Vilks said in an interview with Ir.lv. The government may need between 100 million lati ($196.6 million) and 150 million lati in changes to next [...]
Read More >>Choosing Between Arms and Allies
By admin at 23 February, 2011, 3:17 pm
It should surprise no one that many in Latvia view the sale by France of fully equipped assault warships to Russia with grave concern. Other European Union member states seem to be looking increasingly toward Russia as a potential purchaser of military equipment. But is it wise for EU and NATO members to enhance the [...]
Read More >>Latvian Q4 GDP Growth Fastest In Three Years
By admin at 15 February, 2011, 2:43 pm
Latvian economy logged its fastest expansion in three years during the fourth quarter, latest figures showed Wednesday. It was the second consecutive growth after nine quarters of contractions. A flash estimate from Central Statistical Bureau showed that the gross domestic product grew 3.7% year-on-year on a seasonally unadjusted basis in the fourth quarter, faster than [...]
Read More >>Latvia Sees Return of Foreign Direct Investment, Swedbank Says
By admin at 15 February, 2011, 2:41 pm
Latvia, which had the European Union’s steepest economic decline in 2009, saw foreign direct investment recover last year and is expected to return to pre- crisis levels in the next few years, according to Swedbank AB. “With the economic recovery, foreign investors’ interest in the Latvian economy has renewed,” Martins Kazaks and Dainis Stikuts, economists [...]
Read More >>Skyforger’s gruff lyrics tell the story of Latvian warrior Kurbads
By admin at 8 February, 2011, 2:14 pm
By far the most successful heavy metal band from Latvia has to be Skyforger. Last year, the band released Kurbads, its first album on the Metal Blade Records label and its sixth album overall. Besides attracting a large and dedicated following within Latvia, Skyforger has made itself known internationally. This is not too surprising. Not [...]
Read More >>John Looby – Latvia has shown that debt default is not the only answer
By admin at 14 January, 2011, 3:03 pm
The list of commentators arguing that some form of Irish debt default is inevitable has been growing by the day. Whether making a moral case (taxpayers should not be responsible for the debts of private banks) or a practical one (taxpayers will prove unable to shoulder the likely debt burden now faced), such commentary has [...]
Read More >>Latvia May Return to Eurobond Market Next Year, Finance Chief Vilks Says
By admin at 21 December, 2010, 2:07 pm
Latvia may return to the international bond market in the second half of next year, when the government expects another credit-rating upgrade, Finance Minister Andris Vilks said. Receiving a higher debt grade in the first half of 2011 would “mean that probably we will move for a Eurobond issue for the second half of the [...]
Read More >>Latvia’s Sovereign Rating Raised by S&P on Lower Deficit, Return to Growth
By admin at 14 December, 2010, 3:52 pm
Latvia’s credit rating was raised one step by Standard & Poor’s, which cited public debt remaining at “moderate levels” and the economy “rebalancing quickly.” S&P raised the rating to BB+, one level below investment grade, analyst Frank Gill said in a statement from London today. The grade has a stable outlook, meaning the credit evaluator [...]
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