 |
|
Latvia in Facts
Location
On the world map, Latvia is to be found on the east coast of the Baltic Sea at the crossroads of northern and eastern Europe. Latvia, a parliamentary republic is bordered by Estonia to the north, Russia and Belarus to the east, Lithuania to the south and has a maritime border with Sweden to the west.
| Name of country | Republic of Latvia |
| Country code | LV |
| Size of Area | 64 589 km2 |
| Population (at the beginning of 2009) | 2,229 million |
| Capital City | Riga |
| Ethnic Composition (beginning of 2008) | 59.4% Latvian, 27.6% Russian, 3.6% Belarusian, 2.5% Ukrainian, 2.3% Polish, 1.3% Lithuanian, 0.4% Jewish, 2.9% other nationalities |
| Language | Latvian (official); Russian, English and German are also widely spoken |
| Political system | Republic, parliamentary democracy |
| Head of State | President Mr. Andris Bērziņš (elected in 2011 by Parliament for a four-year term) |
| Head of Government | Prime Minister Mr. Valdis Dombrovskis |
| Political Parties | Association of Political Parties “Harmony Centre” (Politisko partiju apvienība “Saskaņas Centrs”): 31 seats Unity (Vienotība): 20 seats Zatlers’ Reform Party: 16 seats National Association “All For Latvia!” - “For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK” (Nacionālā apvienība “Visu Latvijai!” – “Tēvzemei un Brīvībai/LNNK”): 14 Greens and Farmers Union (Zaļo un Zemnieku savienība): 13 seats Independents: 6 seats |
| Membership in International Organizations | Member of NATO since 2004 Member of WTO since 1998 |
| EU Membership | Since 2004 |
ECONOMIC INDICATORS
| GDP(2010) GDP(2009) | EUR 18.017 billion EUR 18.615 billion |
| Growth of GDP(2010) Growth of GDP(2009) | - 0.2% |
| GDP per capita(2010) GDP per capita(2009) | EUR 8,031 EUR 8,256 |
| Private Consumption (percentage of GDP, 2010) | 63% |
| Public Consumption (percentage of GDP, 2010) | 17% |
| Capital Account Balance (2010) | EUR 352.7 million |
| Gross Fixed Capital Formation (percentage of GDP, 2010) | 18% |
| Growth of Industrial Production (as % of previous period, data adjusted by number of working days, 2010) | 13.9% |
| Government Revenue (percentage of GDP, 2010) | 36.2% |
| Government Expenditure (percentage of GDP, 2010) | 42.5% |
| Inflation Rate (2010) | - 1.1% |
| Rate of Real Wage Growth (2010) | - 3.5% |
| Unemployment Rate (2010) | 18.7% |
| Fiscal Balance (percentage of GDP) (2010) | - 6.3% |
| Current Accounts (2010) | EUR 648.5 billion |
| Exports of goods and services (2010) | EUR 9.578 billion |
| Imports of goods and services (2010) | EUR 9.625 billion |
| Accumulated FDI (2010) | EUR 8.250 billion |
| Accumulated FDI per capita (2010) | EUR 3700 |
| Government Debt (2010) | EUR 7.230 billion |
| Exchange Rate to EURO, fixed rate as of January 1, 2005 | 1 EUR = 0.702804 LVL |
| Credit Ratings: Fitch Moody’s R&I S&P | BBB-/stable (Dec. 2011) Baa3 (Dec. 2011) BBB-/stable (Jan. 2012) BB+/positive (March 2011) |
Additional information at :
http://www.csb.lv/
http://www.bank.lv/
http://www.li.lv/
http://www.fitchratings.com/
http://www.moodyseurope.com/
http://www.standardandpoors.com/
http://www.r-i.co.jp/eng/
