Editor's note

New financial instruments include loans, guarantees, equity, venture capital and other risk-bearing instruments, possibly combined with interest rate subsidies or guarantee fee subsidies. They represent a resource-efficient way of using EU budget funds to enable investment in the economy.

European Structural and Investment Funds (i.e. ESIF regulations for 2014-20) have widened the scope of financial instruments to include all EU’s thematic policy objectives and all five European Structural and Investment Funds: the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the Cohesion Fund (CF), the European Social Fund (ESF), the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD), and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF).

The Commission and European Investment Bank “financial implications” will be discussed and planned for each EU member state with a view to the present EU political program and would be fully compatible with the member states’ socio-economic directions.  

7-year planning period

The fi-compass is the first in a series of actions, which will cover a 7-year commitment between the Commission and the EIB. The fi-compass advisory platform will provide the EU states and their managing authorities (as well as microcredit providers) with support and learning opportunities for developing financial instruments for growth.

The fi-compass advisory platform will be complemented later in 2015, with the launch of a ‘multi-regional assistance’ initiative bringing together managing authorities and financial institutions. This initiative aims to support the potential use of financial instruments in investment priority areas that are shared by regions from at least two different EU states.

The Commission encourages member states (as well as regional and local authorities) to make extensive use of innovative financial instruments for the EU 2014-20 financial programming period in key investment areas such as SME-support, energy efficiency, information and communication technology, transport and R&D support.

Reference: European Commission, Speech by Vice-President Katainen at the launch of FI-Compass, Brussels, 19 January 2015, in:

http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_SPEECH-15-3480_en.htm?locale=en

Present business driven investment climate in the Baltics

Investment situation in the three Baltic States is different: stimuli to investments are varied. Thus, in Estonia about 73 per cent of SMEs are ready to invest, compared with about 60% in 2014.

In Lithuania the investment climate is going for better: in 2014 there were 42 per cent of companies with investment-driven intentions; presently, it’s about 70 %.

Only in Latvia the trend is the opposite: about 39 per cent of companies in 2015 would are anxious for innovative investments; in 2014 the figure was 48%.

Investment into new goods and services is the main driving force for 46 per cent of SMEs in Lithuania, 36 per cent in Estonia and 26 per cent in Latvia. Intentions to change the existing business structure are different as well in the Baltics (in % of interest): 11 % in Estonia, 5 % in Lithuania and 3 % in Latvia.    

As to the main directions and sectors for investment, 80 per cent of companies in Estonia would like to invest in hotels and restaurants (with a due attention to new products and services). In Lithuania, the main directions are ICT, industrial development and energy resources; in Latvia, it is ICT, leisure services, as well as industry and energy.  

Source: http://www.baltic-course.com/rus/kolonka_redaktora/?doc=14262&ins_print

As to the EU in general, according to the recent Eurostat account, business investment rate in 2014 was at the level of 22 per cent among the euro-area states, to which all three Baltic States belong. Business profit share has been rather stable, at the level of about 39 per cent.

Source:  European Commission, EUROSTAT report in:

http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_STAT-15-3521_en.htm