OFF THE WIRE

  • 2002-02-28
FINNISH RETAILERS: Finland is tightening its grip on Estonia's grocery market. A leading market researcher told the Estonian newspaper Eesti Paevaleht that Finnish companies could soon account for 50 percent of the retail food sales market. Margit Raid, head of the market research firm Profindex, said Finnish firms currently have a 30 percent share of the market. Retailers R-Kioski, Prisma and the Kesko-owned discounter Saastumarket are set to up their holdings this year. Raid expects the market share of Finnish retailers to grow to 40 percent by year's end by focusing mostly on discount retailers and kiosks. Maldar Maesalu, the CEO of Kesko Eesti, said that Kesko hopes to increase its market share to 20 percent. He added that he didn't not believe there would be any new entrants from Finland in the market in the near future. (Baltic Business News)

JOBS WANTED: About 320,000 Lithuanians are currently considering searching for work abroad, according to a Ministry of Social Security and Labor survey reported in the Lithuanian newspaper Verslo Zinios. The ministry reported that about 204,000 Lithuanian citizens are currently working abroad. About 60 percent are working in European Union countries. According to the survey, 16.2 percent of respondents said they were determined to find work abroad in the near future. The United States was also cited as a desirable employment destination, the poll showed. Those most likely to leave were young, educated, single people. (BBN)

NEW FLIGHTS: The small Swedish airline Trygg-Flyg will make regular flights between Jonkoping in southern Sweden and Riga beginning March 11, the Latvian business daily Bizness & Baltija reported. Trygg-Flyg will fly a SAAB-340 with a maximum of 33 passengers between the two cities three days a week - Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Trygg-Flyg spokesperson Okke Lantz said the airline was targeting Swedish passengers. "We felt the demand on their part," said Lantz. "Many are willing to fly from Stockholm to Riga via Jonkoping." The Swedish airline, founded in 1991, has no plans to open an office in Riga. Tickets will be available through travel agencies. (Baltic News Service)

HYPERMARKET APPROVED: The Norwegian real estate developer Linstow International has approved plans to build Estonia's largest hypermarket, according to the newspaper Aripaev. The project had been delayed twice in the past. "It is now 100 percent certain this project will get off the ground," said Linstow Tallinn OU board member Paal Aschjem. The project will include a 50,000-square-meter shopping complex. The grocery chain Rimi will be the largest tenant; its planned 11,000-square-meter store will be Rimi's largest in Estonia. Aschjem said Linstow Tallinn already had preliminary agreements to lease 60 percent of the complex's retail space. The cost of the project, which will be constructed at the corner of Tartu Maantee and Suur-Sojamae streets, is estimated at 400 million kroons ($23.5 million). It is scheduled to be open by Christmas 2003. (BBN)

OIL PROFITS: Lithuania's Klaipedos Nafta, the operator of the Klaipeda oil terminal, posted a loss of about 10 million litas ($2.5 million) - its first-ever loss. Jurgis Ausra, the company's managing director, said Feb. 22 that last year's results were due to rising depreciation costs, high taxes on real estate, payment of interest on loans and unfavorable rail freight tariffs. The company handled 5.1 million tons of oil last year. It forecasts a turnover of 5.9 millions tons this year. Klaipedos Nafta earned a profit of 17.8 million litas on a turnover of 105.3 million litas in 2000. (BNS)

SOUTHERN EXPOSURE: Two Lithuanian companies are moving into Latvia. VP Market, operator of the Baltics' largest retail trade chain Vilniaus Prekyba, plans to open two Maxima supermarkets in Latvia this year. The first Maxima store opened Feb. 27. The second is scheduled to open in September, VP spokesman Gintaras Marcinkevicius said. Marcinkevicius said the new center in Latvia would include a supermarket, furniture store and building materials store. Vilniaus Prekyba has a 30 percent share of the Lithuanian retail trade market. Cili Piza, Lithuania's largest pizzeria chain, on Feb. 22 announced plans to open new restaurants in Vilnius, Klaipeda and Riga in the first half of this year. Cilija, the owner of the chain, has earmarked 2.4 million litas ($600,000) for investments this year, of which 1.1 million litas will go to Latvia. Last year, the company invested a total of 1.5 million litas on expansion. Cilija is projecting a turnover of 28.5 million litas this year, a 22.5 percent increase from last year. The company now runs 12 catering enterprises in Lithuania and one in the Latvian port city of Liepaja, servicing around 8,000 visitors daily. (BNS)

EXPORTS FADE: Decreased demand from Sweden and Finland pushed Estonia's exports down in the second half of last year, according to a report by the Bank of Finland's Institute of Economies in Transition. Exports fell 12 percent in the fourth quarter last year, capping a downward trend that began in July. Exports to European Union countries fell to just below 70 percent of all exports. In 2000 77 percent of Estonia's exports went to the EU. Exports to Russia and CIS countries increased to about 5 percent of last year's total. Robust export figures in the first half of 2001 helped keep export growth for the year in the black - 7 percent higher than 2000. Estonia's top exports included machinery, wood and wood products and textiles. (BBN)

SUGAR NEWS: Lithuania's lone locally owned sugar producer, Marijampoles Cukrus, is reportedly in merger negotiations with Denmark's Danisco Sugar, Verslo Zinios reported. Danisco owns Lithuania's three other sugar producers. Marijampoles Cukrus hopes to get the lion's share of an expected government increase in the sugar production quota due to be announced this week. If it does, the company's value will increase, making it an attractive purchase for Danisco. Under a government resolution adopted last year, the sugar production quota is expected to increase from 112,000 tons to 122,000 tons this year. Marijampoles Cukrus is expected to get 8,000 tons of the 10,000 ton increase. (BBN)