25 February 2020
Last year, Riga International Airport was the third fastest-growing airport in European capital cities, the airport's representatives informed LETA, citing a report by Airport Council International (ACI) on airports' performance in 2019. The number of passengers at Riga Airport rose 10.5 percent last year, which is the third steepest growth after Vienna Airport and Milan Malpensa Airport. ... Read more
24 February 2020
The international rating agency S&P Global Ratings has raised Latvia's credit rating from A to A+, with a stable future outlook, the ratings agency announced. This is Latvia's highest ever ratings level. The agency points out that prudent fiscal policy will continue to support Latvia's already modest debt decline, despite somewhat weaker medium-term economic growth prospects. ... Read more
21 February 2020
A very informatively rich afternoon at the newly-opened Business Garden Riga today! Close to a hundred participants came to hear an update on the Commercial Real Estate Development in Riga for 2020-2022 as presented by the CBRE Baltics.... Read more
19 February 2020
On February 19, NCCL members working in tourism promotion and hospitality met with representatives of the Latvian Investment and Development Agency (LIAA) and airBaltic for a roundtable to discuss tendencies and possibilities for increasing tourism flow between Norway and Latvia.... Read more
14 February 2020
As part of the forthcoming tax changes, several ministries have proposed applying a reduced value added tax rate to medicines, certain food products, restaurants and newspapers, according to ministries' proposals for changing tax policy guidelines for 2021-2025.... Read more
11 February 2020
Total stock has grown remarkably since 2018 and reached over 704,000 sq m at the end of 2019. Seven office buildings were added to the stock in 2019. The most significant deliveries are Business Garden Rīga, Akropole Offices, Mežaparks Offices and Henrihs (Jaunā Teika). The vacancy rate increased significantly to ca. 9%. Rent rates remain stable. Up to 50% of lease deals were sized from 300 sq m to 1,000 sq m, and one-third of lease transactions were for premises up to 200 sq m in 2019. The Latvian economy lost momentum, yet the growth remained above the 2% level. The forecasts remain firmly positive. Prime office yields stayed at a historic low at 6.25% over 2019.... Read more
06 February 2020
While there are internal politics at play for Latvia's Transport Minister Tālis Linkaits to keep his job and pursue his vision, he appeared to instill confidence among Norwegian investors in Latvia, who surveyed the Minister at a business luncheon on February 5 seeking clarity on the future of Latvia's transport infrastructure, mobility and connectivity. Among many projects under discussion, one of the central topics in the conversation was the progress of the Rail Baltica project, which the investors invited to see as a historic opportunity and catalyst for regional cooperation and creating positive spin off effects for the development of Riga, Latvia, and the whole Baltic region.... Read more
06 February 2020
The Norwegian Chamber of Commerce in Latvia co-signed a statment by the Foreign Investors' Council in Latvia that was published this week, calling for reforms and swift actions in the Higher Education sector, which in the FICIL's Sentiment Index has been cited as one of the problem areas in Latvia which lacks progress and hence negatively impact's Latvia's economic growth.... Read more
04 February 2020
Do you have an idea how to increase efficiency or productivity of industry and at the same time reduce environmental harm? Do you have an idea for an innovative project related to ICT or digitalisation? Are you interested in exploring the potential of a partnership under one of the upcoming EEA and Norway Grants calls? If you did answer affirmatively to the questions above, you should consider participating in the Green Industry and ICT Matchmaking, which will take place in Oslo on March, 2.... Read more
31 January 2020
On the 28th of January close to 50 participants joined a visit to TietoEVRY offices in Riga for a discussion "From brain drain to brain gain" organized jointly by the Norwegian and American Chambers of Commerce and the Association for Business Service Leaders in Latvia (ABSL).... Read more
