Sweden’s average hourly labour costs are just over €40 per hour, high enough to land the country at the top of the EU28 charts, according to a new survey. An hour of labour came in at €40.1 (359 kronor) in … Read More
Monthly Archives: March 2014
Germany ready to reinforce Nato-Russia borders
Germany has said its air force is ready to increase security on Nato’s border with Russia, despite Moscow’s promise not to escalate the crisis in Ukraine. A German defence ministry spokeswoman told the Reuters news agency on Sunday (30 March) … Read More
Poland seeks to avoid Russian ‘gas blackmail’
Prime Minister Donald Tusk visited an expanding underground gas storage facility on Sunday in south east Poland, stressing that such investments are essential in combating ‘gas blackmail’ by Russia. The facility at Husow is due to increase by 100 million … Read More
Latvia will remain fastest growing euro-zone country for next five years
According to the authors of ”Ernst & Young’s” (EY) annual euro-zone macroeconomic report ”Eurozone Economic Forecast”, Latvia will remain the fastest growing euro-zone country for the next five years as well. EY has included for the first time a special … Read More
Release of the first €12 billion for projects in the transport sector
The Commission has adopted a decision making the first 12 billion € tranche available for projects of the trans-European transport network. The budget will boost key projects of the nine core network corridors and help advancing transport policy objectives such … Read More
Germany has no alternative to Russia gas
Germany has no other sensible source of gas and oil other than Russia, the country’s energy minister, Sigmar Gabriel, stated yesterday. His statement came hours after Chancellor Angela Merkel said she foresaw an energy overhaul. Speaking at a debate on Europe’s … Read More
Reactor rooftop intrusion cost 3-4 million euro
A large-scale break and entry by Greenpeace activists at the Oskarshamn nuclear power station in the south of Sweden in early March cost between 25-30 million kronor (3-4 million euro) according to plant operator OKG. The whopping bill was the … Read More
US, NATO firming up plans to deploy rotating ground forces in Baltic States
The United States of America plans to deploy rotating land and sea units in Eastern Europe and the Baltic states in cooperation with NATO to increase its presence in member states where currently only temporary air forces are based, ETV … Read More
Denmark joins US, UK in bolstering Baltic Air Policing Mission
Denmark will send six F-16 fighter to the Baltics for four months from the beginning of May to due to the effect the Ukraine crisis has had on international security. Danmarks Radio, the Danish public broadcasting service, said the move … Read More
Finland builds facilities to ease border crossing
Despite a recent drop in the number of Russian tourists visiting Finland following the abrupt rise in the euro exchange rate, Finland continues to make its border more accessible and the crossing more convenient for its closest neighbors. As a … Read More
Baltic sea landscapes
Actually, the title should be Finnish sea landscapes, but whatever – this time I’ll present some photo s from our boating trips. Some subject to some mild editing, but I can assure you that the reality was much much more … Read More
Poles increasingly against euro
A new opinion poll has found that 52 percent of respondents feel that joining the eurozone would have a negative effect on Poland. for Poland. Although 44 percent of respondents said that they were in favour of taking up the … Read More
European Court orders Latvia to pay the largest compensation to date – more than EUR 1 million
In the matter regarding fair remuneration, the European Court of Human Rights has ordered Latvia to pay compensation worth more than EUR 1 million. This ruling was announced in the ‘Vistiņš and Perepyolkin against Latvia’. It was decided that the … Read More
Sweden leads EU in asylum-seeker approvals
Sweden gave protection to 53 percent of people claiming asylum in the country last year, significantly higher than the EU average of 34 percent and the highest per capita of all the EU28 countries, figures released yesterday show. The country approved … Read More
Latvian businessmen suffer losses because of situation in Ukraine
Latvia’s total volume of export to Russia reached EUR 1,470,000,000 last year. Import figures are said to have been EUR 1,200,000,000. One year ago, Russian businessmen invested half a billion euro in Latvia. This includes approximately 100 million in electricity … Read More
Unlocking doors with a fingerprint
Finnish company Idolo has developed a key-less door that opens with fingerprint detection and does not require electricity, unlike many other biometric locks. Locks that open using fingerprint detection have previously been largely dependent on electricity. Pori-based Idolo has developed … Read More
Winter-wonderland at Tryvann
I love most activities that involve any type of board and speed and I was already starting to get restless with being unable to skate due to the nature of the Norwegian fall that is usually quite rainy. So when … Read More
Ukrainian patients in Estonia for treatment
Five Ukrainian patients who were injured in violence in Ukraine this year have arrived in Estonia for treatment. Of the five who arrived Friday, three are being treated at the North Estonia Medical Center, and two at the Haapsalu Neurological … Read More
Emigration level drops in Lithuania
Around 38,800 people emigrated from Lithuania last year, the final figures from the Statistics Lithuania, the country’s statistics department, show. Compared to 2012, the number dropped by 2,300 people (5.6 per cent). In January, the Statistics Lithuanian said around 40,400 … Read More
Timo Hämäläinen
This blog is dedicated to sharing the experiences and insights of a Finnish urbanist - or more specifically, “a bohemian free spirit who travels a lot” as once dubbed. The stories evolve around different aspects of urban life in the … Read More