Analytics, Banks, Economics, EU – Baltic States, GDP, Inflation, Lithuania

SEB expects Lithuania's economy to expand by 3.4% this year, 3% next year and 2.6% in 2020, unchanged from the projections in the group's Nordic Outlook report released in late August. 

"We are keeping our forecasts unchanged from those we released in August," SEB Lithuania's chief economist Tadas Povilauskas said. 

"There will be a natural slowdown in economic growth that will be caused by external factors. The key export markets will grow at a slower pace," he said. 

Lithuania's GDP has been growing for nine successive years now, marking the longest period of economic growth since independence, the economist noted. 

"Since late 2009, we have had nine years in a row without an economic downturn. We may already say that our economic growth sets a record this year," he told.

SEB says Lithuania's economic growth is much better balanced now than it was 11 or 12 years ago, but there are some warning signs, such as wage growth outpacing productivity, that need to be watched.

The bank expects average inflation to reach 2.8% this year, edge down to 2.5% in 2019 and stay at this level in 2020.