Latvia: Economic growth picks up in the second quarter of 2026
GDP reading: Latvia’s GDP increased 3.0% on a year-on-year basis in Q2, following a 2.5% expansion in the previous quarter. Q2’s reading was the strongest since Q1 2022. In seasonally adjusted quarter-on-quarter terms, the economy increased 0.7% in Q2, following 0.6% growth in the previous quarter.
Private spending, investment and exports fuel momentum: Compared to the previous quarter’s data, figures in Q2 improved for private consumption (+3.7% on a year-on-year basis vs +2.0% in Q1), fixed investment (+6.5% vs +3.2% in Q1), exports of goods and services (+7.7% vs +1.4% in Q1) and imports of goods and services (+7.1% vs +3.0% in Q1). In contrast, the reading for government consumption softened in Q2 (-2.4% vs -1.2% in Q1).
Panelist insight: Swedbank analysts commented:
“Recent data indicate that the Latvian economy is chugging along fine. Rising consumption, strengthening export performance, and continued growth in investment are being seen after the very strong gains recorded in 2025. We are increasing our GDP forecast for this year to 2.3%, and we expect a further pickup in growth to 2.5% in 2028. However, risks are on the downside, as geopolitical uncertainty is still very much present.”