Gasoline prices have risen by 10 cents a liter over the last 10 days despite falling oil prices and fuel retailers see no drop off in sight. Prices may reach €2 per liter again this winter.
Estonia's continued high inflation, driven by high energy prices arising from the Ukraine conflict and the highest rate in the European Union, will continue through to spring, experts say.
Director of the Estonian Institute of Economic Research (EKI) Marje Josing said that Estonia is heading into another hugely expensive heating season, which is the result of decades of work not done. Senior economist for Swedbank Liis Elmik believes Estonia should once again offer support to less fortunate families.
Estonia s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) will grow by 3 percent this year, and by 5 percent in 2022, Swedbank reports in its latest forecast, which has proven more optimistic than earlier Swedbank reports, mainly due to improvements in external demand and the impact of pension reform. This means that the economy should be back to the level it was on the eve of the COVID-19 arrival in or around this fall, according to the bank.
The latter, which saw many individuals cash out of the so-called second pillar of the Estonian pension scheme, following a law permitting just that, has led to a cash injection into the economy equivalent to 3.7 percent of the 2021 GDP estimate, exclusive of income tax, Swedbank says.