News in this section

• Lithuanian economy grew revised 6.9% in Q4, 2006
• Lithuania: The World's 22nd Freest Economy
• Vilnius - European Capital of Culture 2009 Begins Its 700 Day Marathon
• Aer Lingus Lithuania Bound
• Queen visit brings excitement to Lithuania
• The Baltics: Pampering Foreign Investors

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Lithuanian economy grew revised 6.9% in Q4, 2006
Budapest Business Journal
28 Feb 2007

Lithuania's economy, the biggest of the European Union's three Baltic states, expanded an annual 6.9% in the Q4, led by construction, according to revised figures. Retail sales rose an annual 21.7% in January on demand for vehicles.

Gross domestic product totaled 22.67 billion litai ($8.66 billion) in the three-month period, the Vilnius-based statistics office said in an electronic  statement on its website today. The figure exceeds the preliminary estimate of 6.6% released on January 26. Lithuania's pace of growth is more than double the 3.3% pace in the Q4 of the 13-nation euro region.

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Lithuania: The world's 22nd Freest Economy
The Heritage Foundation and Wall Street Times
23 March 2007

Lithuania's economy is 72 percent free, according to our 2007 assessment, which makes it the world's 22nd freest economy. Its overall score is 1 percentage point lower than last year, partially reflecting new methodological detail. Lithuania is ranked 14th out of 41 countries in the European region, and its overall score is higher than the regional average.

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Vilnius - European Capital of Culture 2009 Begins Its 700 Day Marathon
PR.com
1 February 2007

With 699 days remaining until 2009, the Vilnius – European Capital of Culture 2009 Bureau announced its team and ambitious plans:  to draw Europe‘s attention through its unique programme and modern outlook on culture.

‘As a new member state, we will be expected to provide Europe with new cultural experiences, unique perspectives and unusual ideas.  There are only 699 days left until 2009 so we must act fast.  We are determined to present our programme outline to the European Commission as early as June, and to peak the interest of as many European Union residents and neighbouring state citizens as we can in the next two years’, said the bureau‘s Executive Director, Rūta Vanagaitė, as she presented the team and plans.

The Vilnius – European Capital of Culture 2009 programme, called CULTURE Live, will strive to create a new European cultural experience in which culture is an integral part of modern life and each individual its creator. The general budget for the Vilnius – European Capital of Culture 2009 programme during the entire 2004–2009 period is 24,828,081 EUR.  The budget for the year 2007 is 2,404,927 EUR (8,297 million LTL).

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Aer Lingus Lithuania Bound
Aviation News
10 Jan 2007

Ireland's national airline 'Aer Lingus' has announced that they are launching a new service to Lithuania. Aer Lingus will be providing the service from May onwards, beginning with thrice weekly flights from Dublin to Vilnius.

The move comes in the wake of popular services linking Dublin with Polish cities such as Warsaw and Krakow. Specially reduced fares will be on offer to mark the launch of the Vilnius link.

Enda Corneille, Aer Lingus Commercial Director, said of the plans:

‘The introduction of these new routes reaffirms Aer Lingus’ commitment to providing direct, low fares access  to new destinations as well as providing real growth opportunities in inbound tourism from emerging markets.  We have seen particularly strong customer demand for services to Eastern Europe and this year commenced a Dublin to Poznan service as well as expanding capacity on routes to Warsaw, Krakow and Riga.  We are delighted that the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius is to be served by Aer Lingus, and we expect to see strong growth on both of these new destinations.’

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Queen visit brings excitement to Lithuania
BBC News
18 October 2006

The Queen has received an enthusiastic welcome as thousands of Lithuanians came to see her at the start of her tour of the three Baltic states.

In the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, a flag-waving crowd gathered in the city's Town Hall Square, cheering as the Queen went on "walkabout" meeting members of the public.
Many had arrived early to watch the Queen's speech to the Seimas, the Lithuanian parliament, which was broadcast on giant TV screens in the square.

Despite the fresh, cold weather, the excitement was palpable in Vilnius' Town Hall Square. Several thousand people had gathered, waving the Union Jack and the red, gold and green Lithuanian flag.

They had already seen the Queen, wearing pale grey, paying tribute to their country in her address to the Lithuanian parliament, which was broadcast live on national television. She praised Lithuania and the other Baltic states, Latvia and Estonia, for the progress they had made since leaving the Soviet Union just 15 years ago.
 
‘You have emerged from the shadow of the Soviet Union and blossomed as sovereign states, taking up your rightful places in the international community and as respected members of the European Union and Nato. It is a transformation - political, economic and social - for which there are few parallels in the history of Europe’ the Queen said.

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The Baltics: Pampering Foreign Investors
Forbes
2 June 2006

Think of the Baltic countries, and images of Gorbachev's tanks rolling through the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius in 1991 might come to mind. Or you might simply draw a blank. The tiny nations, which, along with Lithuania, include Estonia and Latvia, sit next to their much-larger neighbor Russia and attract little attention beyond their borders. Yet they have quietly and effectively created some very attractive incentives for foreign investors.

Even before the Baltic states were fully independent from their communist overlord, they were trying to reform their economies. It was Lithuania's implementation of price increases in early 1991 that brought Soviet troops across the borders of Estonia and Latvia and into the streets of Vilnius. The soldiers quelled protests, killing civilians in the process. The three counties became independent later that year and immediately set about making their economies more attractive. They knew it was a priceless opportunity; they were small and nimble and situated right in the heart of Europe--able to communicate with investors from Western and Central Europe and, eventually, Russia.

Of the three, Lithuania may have the furthest to go, but it still beats Belgium, the Czech Republic and Poland in terms of openness to foreign capital. And its citizens are reaping the benefits: Last year, the country's unemployment rate stood at just 5%--compared with 8% for Belgium and 9% for the Czech Republic. Closest to Poland geographically, Lithuania at one time was part of an empire with its bigger neighbor that stretched to the Black Sea.

For this southernmost Baltic nation, privatization was not as easy as it was for Latvia or Estonia. In the 1990s, the Lithuanian government moved swiftly to take apart the collective farms that flourished during the Soviet era, and there were accusations of corruption and mafia participation in land reforms. Today, however, agriculture is fully privatized and is still a significant part of the economy. And U.S. companies have a strong presence here, too: Hertz, Hewlett-Packard, Merck and Pfizer are just some of the foreign firms in Lithuania, which--like its two Baltic neighbors--is known for its highly educated populace.

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