Analytics, Latvia, Legislation, Markets and Companies, Shadow economy

Of these respondents, 60% said that the proportion of shadow economy in their industry was rather small or very small and 13% claimed there was no shadow economy in their sectors at all. Meanwhile, 23% of the surveyed entrepreneurs admitted that the proportion of shadow economy in their respective industry was either large or very large.

Compared to a previous survey conducted last spring, the percentage of entrepreneurs claiming a small or no shadow economy in their respective industry has grown by 18%, while the number of respondents considering the size of the shadow economy to be large has risen by 5 percentage points, the latest survey shows.

In Abelniece’s words, managers and owners of businesses in the services and manufacturing sectors were among the most optimistic respondents, with 71% and 65% respectively saying that the shadow economy in their industry was either small or nonexistent.

Meanwhile, respondents in the trade sector were the most likely to describe the size of the shadow economy as large (30%).

The Citadele Index is based on a survey of 750 company owners and business executives, representing firms of different sizes doing business in different industries. The index is published quarterly since 2004. SKDS pollster carries out the survey for Citadele Bank.