Market research Lithuania

PMR Research is a specialised custom market research unit of PMR Ltd., a British-American company based in Poland. We offer a wide range of research services in Central and Eastern Europe for companies interested in business over the countries in the region.

Research services provided by PMR Research in Lithuania include:

brand and company image studies
research on customer preferences, their satisfaction and their purchasing habits
product concept tests
usage & attitude studies
internet surveys
quantitative surveys - telephone, CATI, face-to-face
qualitative research - focus groups, IDIs
industry analyses (comprehensive analyses of given market sectors performed using PMR's proprietary methodology PMR MarketInsight)
preparation of databases
fieldwork services

Why to invest?

Stable political environment
Developed infrastructure
EU membership
Geographical location – access to the Baltic’s, Russia, Belarus and Poland
Educational and R&D base
Low employment costs
Skilled workforce
Strong GDP growth rate
Diversified industry – existing supplier base

Business and economical environment

After Estonia and Latvia the country is a third ex-Soviet republic that has been a member of the EU since 2004. Lithuania, like the two other Baltic states, offers a great location for businesses wanting to increase its presence in Russia, but additionally it has a few advantages over its Baltic siblings – a border with the Kaliningrad exclave of Russia, access to Poland, the biggest market of the new EU, as well as to Belarus. To make development in those directions easier it should be emphasized that most of the population speak Russian and in some parts Polish is spoken by a large part of society. The political and economic environment in the country is stable and GDP growth for the coming years is forecasted at a high level. However, a threat is posed by the fact that the government runs a country with a deficit exceeding 10% of the GDP threshold. Opportunities within Lithuania are offered in such branches as ICT, biotechnology, plastics, lasers, machinery and electrical equipment, metal processing, furniture and wood processing, food, business process outsourcing and logistics. Average employment costs are still low and Lithuanian businesses are offered a tempting 15% corporate tax rate.

A high GDP growth rate amounted at the level of 3.1% in 2008 while its value reached EUR 32.4bn. The 2009 and 2010 forecasts indicate sharp decrease of the GDP growth which may hit the negative values of -9.1% and -3.2% respectively. The inflation rate has continued growing trend started after the accession to the European Union in 2004 and at the end of 2008 reached the level of 11%. While the economy will face the decrease of the GDP the price increase will be capped with inflation reduced to 5.5% (2009) and 0.9% (2010).

The unemployment rate increased to 5.8% at the end of 2008 as a consequence of the growing economical problems in the second half of the year and this trend is forecasted to last in 2009 and 2010 when the share of the unemployed in the working age population will hike to 9.9% and 12.3%. At the same time, average gross monthly salary averaged EUR 654 (2008). Lithuania just like Latvia and Estonia are planning to join the Euro zone, however, date is unknown at the very moment.

The value of foreign direct investment in Lithuania as of 1 July 2008 made EUR 10.04bn, or by 0.6 per cent more than as of 1 April 2008 (EUR 9.98bn). The bulk of investment fell within investors from Sweden –14.1% of the total FDI, Poland – (12.%, Denmark –11.1%, Russia –10.3 %, Germany –8.7%, Estonia – 6.7%, Latvia –5.1%, Finland –5.0%, the Netherlands –4.5%. Direct investment from EU-27 countries made EUR 7.87bn (78.4% of the total FDI), from CIS countries –10.9%.

Lithuanian’s natural resources are: peat and arable land. Main industries include: metal-cutting machine tools, electric motors, television sets, refrigerators and freezers, petroleum refining, shipbuilding (small ships), furniture making, textiles, food processing, fertilizers, agricultural machinery, optical equipment, electronic components, computers and amber.

In 2007, the most important partners in exports were Russia (15%), Latvia (12.9%), Germany (10.5%) and Poland (6.3%), in imports – Russia (18%), Germany (15%), Poland (10.6%) and Latvia (5.5%). The biggest share of goods was exported to EU Member States – 64.8% of the total exports from Lithuania (exports to CIS countries made up 24.5%). The biggest share of imports was from EU Member States as well – 68.3% of the total imports to Lithuania (imports from CIS countries made up 21.9%).

Social environment

According to Invest in Lithuania, Lithuania has twice as many people with higher education than the EU-15 average and the proportion is the highest in the Baltic. Also, 90% of Lithuanians speak at least one foreign language and half of the population speaks two foreign languages, mostly Russian and English or Polish. According to the Lithuanian population census of 2001, about 84% of the country's population speak Lithuanian as their native language, 8.2% are the native Russian speakers, 5.8% - of Polish. Almost 2/3 is fluent in Russian, while only about 16% admit speaking English. According to the Euro barometer survey carried in 2005, 80% of Lithuanians can speak Russian and 32% can speak English.

Lithuania is said to have twice as many people with higher education compared to the EU average being the highest number in the Baltic States. Vilnius University, the largest university in Lithuania, is one of the oldest in Northern Europe whereas Kaunas University of Technology is the country’s largest technical university in the Baltic States and the second largest in Lithuania. Other universities include Kaunas University of Medicine, Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre, Vytautas Magnus University, and Mykolas Romeris University.

Most Lithuanian schools teach English as a first foreign language, but students may also learn German, or, in some schools, French. Schools where Russian and Polish are the primary languages of education exist in the areas populated by these minorities.

Infrastructure and technological environment

The railway network in Lithuania is below par in terms of network length. There are fewer tracks (1,771 km) than in the smaller Latvia (2,303 km). However the road network’s total length is near the average in proportion to the area (it was nearly 80,000 km in 2006).

In 2006 in Lithuania there were over 4.71 million mobile phone users and over 1,221,700 internet users, which accounts of almost 36% of population.

Political environment

Lithuania is a democracy with a unicameral Parliament. Executive power is in hands of the President, who is elected for five years. Latvia has joined both NATO and the European Union in the spring of 2004.

Following the countries parliamentary elections, on 27 November 2008 Andrius Kubilius become Prime Minister of Lithuania. He is the leader of the conservative political party Homeland Union - Lithuanian Christian Democrats. The upcoming elections in Lithuania are: President - 17 May 2009 and Europarliament - June 2009.

General data

Area: 65,200 sq km
Population: 3.4m (2008)
Capital city: Vilnius
Language: Lithuanian (official), Russian is widely spoken as a second language by majority of the population while Polish by ca. 6%
Ethnic groups: Lithuanian 83.6%, Polish 6.3%, Russian 5.1%, Belarusian 1.1%, other 3.9%
Land boundaries: Belarus, Latvia, Poland, Russia

Major economic indicators

	2006	2007	2008	2009f	2010f
GDP (EUR bn)	24.0	28.4	32.4	31.2	30.5
Population (mn)	3.4	3.4	3.4	3.4	3.3
GDP per capita (EUR)	7,065	8,420	9,628	9,304	9,121
GDP (constant prices y-o-y %)	7.8	8.9	3.1	-9.2	-3.2
Exports, real, y-o-y (%)	12.0	4.3	11.5	-12.6	-3.9
Imports, real, y-o-y (%)	13.7	11.6	10.3	-21.1	-4.7
CPI (average, y-o-y %)	3.7	5.7	11.0	5.5	0.9
Monthly wage, nominal	459	548	654	561	531
Unemployment rate (%)	5.6	4.3	5.8	9.9	12.3
Net FDI (EUR bn)	1.2	1.0	0.8	0.4	0.3
FDI % GDP	5.1	3.6	2.4	1.1	0.9
FX reserves (EUR bn)	4.4	5.2	4.6	4.1	3.9
Exchange rate to USD AVG	2.75	2.52	2.35	2.66	2.63
Exchange rate to EUR AVG	3.45	3.45	3.45	3.45	3.45

Last update: Q2 2009

Useful data

Currency: Lithuanian litas (LTL)
Time zone: GMT GMT +2
Area code: +370

If you would like to find out more on the Lithuanian market opportunities please do not hesitate to contact us directly:
phone: (48 12) 618 90 80
faks (48 12) 618 90 08
e-mail: info@pmr-r.com

PMR Business Solutions in Lithuania

Lithuania market reports
To purchase or find detailed information on PMR Publications reports covering the general economy, construction, retail, pharmaceutical, and ICT sectors in Lithuania.

If you are looking for greater detail trust our research and consulting divisions to carry out projects tailored to your business needs.

Lithuania market research
PMR Research offers a full array of qualitative and quantitative research methodologies, providing services such as customer satisfaction studies, brand awareness and brand image research, distribution and competition studies, segmentation and sector analyses.

Lithuania consulting
PMR Consulting offers a wide range of consulting services in Central and Eastern Europe for foreign companies interested in the region. The typical projects include: competitive intelligence, sourcing, strategic advisory, consulting at foreign direct investments and mergers & acquisitions.