![Would it be wise to raise VAT from 21% to 22%?](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2024/07/thumbnail/1/o7dx.jpg)
Commentary
![Would it be wise to raise VAT from 21% to 22%?](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2024/07/thumbnail/1/o7dx.jpg)
![SAB on 'Russia's hybrid threats: trends and developments'](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2022/01/thumbnail/1/h0j1.jpg)
The Constitution Protection Bureau (SAB) – one of Latvia's three security services – has published the latest in a series of commentaries on topical issues. This time the subject under examination is the Russian hybrid threat. The commentary is reproduced in unedited form below. More articles are available at the website www.sab.gov.lv.
![Baltic Presidents on 20 years of European Union membership](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2024/05/thumbnail/1/nldd.jpg)
The Presidents of Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania issued a joint statement May 1 marking their countries' 20 years of European Union membership. It is reproduced in full below.
![Latvia's 20 years of EU membership: economic accomplishments and a couple of disappointments](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2023/09/thumbnail/1/lyk3.jpg)
At anniversaries like this – 20 years since Latvia joined the European Union on May 1st, 2004 – it is common to do some stock-taking of what has been achieved and what has not.
![Russia-NATO relations in the context of confrontation](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2022/01/thumbnail/1/h0j1.jpg)
The Constitution Protection Bureau (SAB), one of Latvia's three security services, has published an English-language assessment of what it believes to be the current situation in Russia.
![Latvian exports to Russia: business almost as usual?](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2023/09/thumbnail/1/lyk3.jpg)
Latvian exports had a very bad 2023 with double-digit declines that were almost as big as during the financial crisis, as shown in the graph below.
![Has foreign trade activity passed its lowest point in Latvia?](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2024/03/thumbnail/1/n9x8.jpg)
In the fourth quarter of 2023, Latvia's current account deficit stood at 1.6% of the gross domestic product (GDP), with the amount of funds injected into the Latvian economy by residents of other countries being 176 million euro less than that paid for transactions conducted with other countries.
![Latvia Weekly podcast available](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2024/02/thumbnail/1/n5ow.jpg)
Here's a reminder that the independent 'Latvia Weekly' podcast is available for anyone wanting to fill their ears with English-language discussion of Latvian current affairs.
![Is it worth refinancing a housing loan in Latvia?](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2020/05/thumbnail/1/d27e.jpg)
A new piece of analysis by Latvian central bank economists Kārlis Vilerts, Konstantīns Beņkovskis and Artūrs Jānis Ņikitins ponders a question that is likely on the minds of many homeowners at present – is it time to think about changing current mortgage arrangements?
![The 'high value-added' fallacy in Latvia](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2023/09/thumbnail/1/lyk3.jpg)
A recent report titled “Increasing investments and competitiveness for Latvia’s economic security” from the influential American Chamber of Commerce in Latvia (AmCham) calls, on page 3, for a “transition to a high value-added economy”.
![Monetary policy has mitigated the toll of inflation](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2024/01/thumbnail/1/mtt6.jpg)
Only a few days ago, we wished each other a happy New Year. With the year behind us, we reflect on the events and achievements that shaped it.
![2024: an opportunity for Latvia to become a major Web3 hub in Europe](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2023/12/thumbnail/1/moz1.jpg)
Latvia's international competitiveness must be built on innovation in the digital sector, and the adoption of appropriate regulation could allow the Web3 and blockchain industry to become part of Latvia's economic identity. Next year will be crucial for Latvia's ability to position itself as a country open to innovation in financial sector, writes Reinis Znotiņš, Executive Director at the Latvian Blockchain Association.
![No surprises: inflation is low](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2023/12/thumbnail/1/mnqr.jpg)
In November, the average level of prices in Latvia remained unchanged month on month, with annual inflation falling to 1.0%.
![Digitalization of healthcare in Latvia – why, how and for whom?](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2020/09/thumbnail/1/dvk1.jpg)
The importance of digitalization in and of healthcare has been placed into focus for several years and although there are systems in many countries, the full potential of it has not been fully implemented. In Latvia, the process has intensified recently, but what does it mean in practical terms? Kadi Lubi, Kristaps Krafte and Ieva Dzirkale offer their thoughts on the matter on behalf of the American Chamber of Commerce in Latvia.
![Central bank economist points to challenging times for Latvian exports](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2023/12/thumbnail/1/mkd4.jpg)
In the third quarter of this year, the current account of Latvia's balance of payments registered a deficit of 558 million euro, i.e. 5.3% of the gross domestic product (GDP).
![Are Latvians REALLY heavily taxed?](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2023/09/thumbnail/1/lyk3.jpg)
Are Latvians heavily taxed? Ask ten Latvians this question and eleven of them will answer yes… At least, joke aside, that is my feeling after living many years in Latvia. The truth, however, is different.
![Exploring the mysteries and metaphysics of Latvian cemetery traditions](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2022/09/thumbnail/1/j2a2.jpg)
The very particular Latvian tradition of tending graves and burial plots is included in the nation's cultural canon and plays an important role in Latvian society. Although attitudes towards death, dying and burial have attracted a lot of attention from anthropoligical researchers around the world, surprisingly little is known about the practice of visiting cemeteries, according to Madara Oga-Timofejeva, a student of social anthropology at Riga Stradins University (RSU), who writes below about her research project.
![How does the ECB decide on interest rates?](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2023/09/thumbnail/1/lyk3.jpg)
If you feel a bit lost in terms of how interest rate decisions are made in the European Central Bank (ECB), I'll try to sum it up below.
![Should households receive extra support because of high interest rates?](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2023/09/thumbnail/1/lyk3.jpg)
Are interest rates really that high? The usual answer from an economist is: yes... and no. I shall try to argue for both answers below.
![Public service media: independent or not?](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2023/08/thumbnail/1/lnon.jpg)
What do Latvia's residents think of media independence? How important is it? What does it mean in a media audience view? A recent study allowed media consumers to express themselves.
![Of banks, supermarkets and the market economy](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2023/09/thumbnail/1/lyk3.jpg)
Having lived in Latvia for almost 30 years and having witnessed the country’s remarkable transformation towards a market economy that is highly integrated within the European Union, I am saddened by the current political debate regarding the banking system, in particular the idea of capping the interest rates that banks can charge. Allow me to argue – and warn – against this suggestion.
![Media, journalists, and migrants](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2023/06/thumbnail/1/l7vt.jpg)
The current events in the border area of Latvia–Belarus are a reason to create daily news centered on migrants, border crossing, fence, breaking through it, deterring migrants, or allowing migrants into Latvia. The process is justifiably described in the context of the hybrid war by the Belarusian regime. How to write about all this in the media professionally and ethically?
![Wage increases continue to keep up the pace](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2022/12/thumbnail/1/jto9.png)
Latvian central bank economist Andrejs Migunovs provides analysis of current trends in the wage and labor market.
![It's surprising what you find in a Baltic bog](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2023/08/thumbnail/1/ls58.jpg)
It's rare that I feel annoyed these days about missing a press opportunity, but I must admit that it happened last week when I belatedly discovered that the three Baltic Prime Ministers had met in an Estonian bog. If ever there was a press opp designed for me, this was it.
![Media freedom and media restriction](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2023/06/thumbnail/1/l7vu.jpg)
Oh, so that's your "editorial independence and media freedom"! Why is this sentence, opinion, or word not flagged for violation? Why don't you ban it? Start a discussion about criminalizing journalists!
![Diary of a Belarusian journalist in Latvia, Part 2](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2020/12/thumbnail/1/edmx.jpg)
Once, when I – a Belarusian refugee in Latvia – was on a train from Rīga to Tukums, which has become my home in the two years I have lived in Latvia, an elderly woman approached me in the carriage. Dressed simply, with a flowery scarf on her head, she reminded me of my paternal grandmother, who was born in the Voronezh region. She came over and tried to ask me something… in English.
![Diary of a Belarusian journalist in Latvia](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2023/07/thumbnail/3/lch0.jpg)
My life started from a blank page about two years ago in Tukums, which has become so dear to my heart that I now call it "my town". A wonderful, large, friendly Latvian family accepted me as one of their own.
![My heartbeats on the edge of safety](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2023/07/thumbnail/1/ld98.jpg)
A few days before the anniversary of the start of a full-scale war in Ukraine, I received an offer to create a performance for an exhibition called “How I've Been Feeling Lately".
![What affects labor compensation in Latvia?](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2023/06/thumbnail/1/l7qy.jpg)
The Latvian central bank (Latvijas banka, LB) has published a new commentary on the current state of labor market trends in the country, written by LB economists Andrejs Migunovs, Ieva Opmane and Andrejs Bessonovs.
![Latvia's problem with violence against women](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2023/03/thumbnail/1/kd20.jpg)
Our favorite YouTuber, Anete Germane is back with another video.
![Inflation slowly losing steam](https://static.lsm.lv/media/2021/03/thumbnail/1/eyb5.jpg)
Although inflation receded in March compared to the record highs witnessed in the previous months, it is still elevated, and both headline inflation and price hikes in Latvia, excluding the variable energy and food prices, are among the highest in the euro area. In March 2023, the year-on-year price rise in Latvia was 17.3%, while the month-on-month price rise was 0.7%.
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