Latvia joins the referential criterion group for Maastricht inflation in February.

"We have no worries that Latvia could fail to meet any of the criteria at the last moment," Ilmars Rimševičs, Governor of the Bank of Latvia said.

As a result of a national competition of ideas, it was decided that the Latvian 1 euro and 2 euro coins would feature a historic symbol: the profile of a Latvian folk maid, an image used on the silver 5 lats coin. 10 cent, 20 cent and 50 cent coins would feature the large coat of arms of the Republic of Latvia, whereas 1 cent, 2 cent and 5 cent coins would depict the small coat of arms of the Republic of Latvia.

The Bank of Latvia, the country's central bank, is an independent institution that sets and executes monetary policy, manages the foreign currency and gold reserves, emits cash currency and ensures the functioning of the interbank settlement systems, and aggregates financial statistics. The Bank of Latvia is a participant in the system of European Central Banks.

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What's new

20.05.2013 Press Conference of Ilmars Rimsevics, Governor of Bank of Latvia
16.05.2013 On the Resolutions of the Bank of Latvia Council
18.04.2013 Macroeconomic Developments Report. April 2013
10.04.2013 The Bank of Latvia issues a coin dedicated to Rūdolfs Blaumanis
10.04.2013 On issuing a new collector coin – the Baby Coin

Highlights

Latvia plans to be ready to introduce the euro in 2014

The euro is not medicine for all economic maladies, but it provides the economy with an opportunity of faster growth and cheaper payback of the debt accumulated during the crisis.
Latvia set to meet the Maastricht criterion in the evaluation period

Over the year, inflation continued to drop, annual prediction for the year made in December still valid
Budget deficit in the last 3 years has been brought under control, but have to proceed with caution

GDP will grow slower in 2012, possibly requiring additional budget consolidation.
Latvijas Banka ensures euro payments in Europe

Latvijas Banka, in advance to euro introduction, ensures safe and effective infrastructure, which will be used by the system's participants for the everyday payments of their customers – businesses and consumers.