Estonia, as a new member of the WTO, is steadily moving toward a modern market economy with increasing ties to the West, including the pegging of its currency to the euro. It acceded to the European Union in 2004. There is a great degree of economic mobility and technological advancement. The state of the economy is greatly influenced by developments in Finland, Sweden, and Germany, three major trading partners. The high current account deficit remains a concern, although the economy has high GDP growth (around 5% per annum). The Kroon is the official currency of Estonia. ... For other uses of the initials WTO, see WTO (disambiguation). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Map of countries showing percentage of population who have an income below the national poverty line The poverty line is the level of income below which one cannot afford to purchase all the resources one requires to live. ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... For the album by Prince, see 1999 (album) 1999 is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... In economics, a person who is able and willing to work at prevailing wage rate yet is unable to find a paying job is considered unemployed. ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Engineering is the application of scientific and technical knowledge to solve human problems. ... Electronics is the controlled manipulation of the flow of electrons; as defined by KAOS, A.K.A. TCBHM, in 1974. ... A tree trunk as found at the Veluwe, The Netherlands Wood derives from woody plants, notably trees but also shrubs. ... It has been suggested that Textile manufacturing be merged into this article or section. ... Information technology (IT) or Information and communication(s) technology (ICT) is a broad subject concerned with technology and other aspects of managing and processing information, especially in large organizations. ... BlackBerry 7100t Telecommunications is the communication of information over a distance. ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... WTO Logo The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an international, multilateral organization, which sets the rules for the global trading system and resolves disputes between its member states, all of whom are signatories to its about 30 agreements. ... The euro (plural euro, symbol: €; banking code: EUR) is the official currency of the European Union and single currency for over 300 million Europeans in the following twelve European Union member states: Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain; collectively also known as... It has been designated the: International Year of Rice (by the United Nations) International Year to Commemorate the Struggle against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO) 2004 World Health Day topic was Road Safety (by World Health Organization) Year of the Monkey (by the Chinese calendar) See the world in...

Economic overview

For centuries until 1920, Estonian agriculture consisted of native peasants working large feudal-type estates held by ethnic German landlords. In the decades prior to independence, centralized Czarist rule had contributed a rather large industrial sector dominated by the world's largest cotton mill, a ruined post-war economy, and an inflated ruble currency. In years 1920 to 1930, Estonia entirely transformed its economy, despite considerable hardship, dislocation, and unemployment. Compensating the German landowners for their holdings, the government confiscated the estates and divided them into small farms which subsequently formed the basis of Estonian prosperity. 1920 (MCMXX) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar) // Events January January 7 - Forces of Russian White admiral Kolchak surrender in Krasnoyarsk. ... A landlord, or landlady, is the owner of a house, apartment, condominium, or real estate which is rented or leased to an individual or business, who is called the tenant. ... Tsar, (Bulgarian цар�, Russian царь; often spelled Czar or Tzar in English), was the title used for the autocratic rulers of the First and Second Bulgarian Empires since 913, in Serbia in the middle of the 14th century, and in Russia from 1547 to 1917. ... 1930 (MCMXXX) is a common year starting on Wednesday. ...

By 1929, a stable currency, the Kroon (or crown), was established. It is issued by the Bank of Estonia, the country's central bank. Trade focused on the local market and the West, particularly Germany and the United Kingdom. Only 3% of all commerce was with the U.S.S.R. 1929 (MCMXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Kroon is the official currency of Estonia. ... The Bank of Estonia (Estonian: Eesti Pank), is the central bank of Estonia. ... Soviet redirects here. ...

The U.S.S.R.'s forcible annexation of Estonia in 1940 and the ensuing Nazi and Soviet destruction during World War II crippled the Estonian economy. Post-war Sovietization of life continued with the integration of Estonia's economy and industry into the U.S.S.R.'s centrally planned structure. More than 56% of Estonian farms were collectivized in the month of April 1949 alone. Moscow expanded on those Estonian industries which had locally available raw materials, such as oil-shale mining and phosphorites. As a laboratory for economic experiments, especially in industrial management techniques, Estonia enjoyed more success and greater prosperity than other regions under Soviet rule. 1940 (MCMXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1940 calendar). ... The term National Socialism has been used in self-description by a number of different political groups and ideologies, some of which have no connection with the Nazis; see National socialism (disambiguation). ... State motto (Russian): Пролетарии всех стран, соединяйтесь! (Transliterated: Proletarii vsekh stran, soedinyaytes!) (Translated: Workers of the world, unite!) Capital Moscow Official language None; Russian (de facto) Government Federation of Soviet republics Area  - Total  - % water 1st before collapse 22,402,200 km² Approx. ... Combatants Allies: Poland, British Commonwealth, France/Free France, Soviet Union, United States, China, and others Axis Powers: Germany, Italy, Japan, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, and others Casualties Military dead:17 million Civilian dead:33 million Total dead:50 million Military dead:8 million Civilian dead:4 million Total dead:12 million... Collective can also refer to the collective pitch flight control in helicopters A collective is a group of people who share or are motivated by at least one common issue or interest, or work together on a specific project(s) to achieve a common objective. ... 1949 (MCMXLIX) is a common year starting on Saturday. ...

Since reestablishing independence, Estonia has styled itself as the gateway between East and West and aggressively pursued economic reform and integration with the West. Estonia's market reforms put it among the economic leaders in the former COMECON area. A balanced budget, flat-rate income tax, free trade regime, fully convertible currency, competitive commercial banking sector, and hospitable environment for foreign investment are hallmarks of Estonia's free-market-based economy. Estonia also has made excellent progress in regard to structural adjustment. A Soviet poster reading COMECON: Unity of Goals, Unity of Action The Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (COMECON / Comecon / CMEA / CEMA), 1949 – 1991, was an economic organisation of communist states and a kind of Eastern European equivalent to the European Economic Community. ... An income tax is a tax levied on the financial income of persons or corporations. ... Free trade is an economic concept referring to the selling of products between countries without tariffs or other trade barriers. ... Structural adjustment is a term used by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for the changes it recommends for developing countries. ...

In June 1992, Estonia replaced the ruble with its own freely convertible currency, the Kroon (EEK). A currency board was created and the new currency was pegged to the German Mark at the rate at 8 EEK for 1 DEM. When Germany introduced the Euro the peg was changed to 15.6466 Kroon for 1 Euro. The Estonian government is intending to adopt the Euro as the country's currency on 1 January 2007, and finalised the design of Estonia's Euro coins in late 2004. The ruble or rouble (Russian: рубль, plural рубли; see note on spelling below) is the name of the currencies of the Russian Federation and Belarus (and formerly, of the Soviet Union and the Russian Empire). ... The Kroon is the official currency of Estonia. ... A currency board is a monetary authority which is required to maintain an exchange rate with a foreign currency. ... The euro (plural euro, symbol: €; banking code: EUR) is the official currency of the European Union and single currency for over 300 million Europeans in the following twelve European Union member states: Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain; collectively also known as... The euro (plural euro, symbol: €; banking code: EUR) is the official currency of the European Union and single currency for over 300 million Europeans in the following twelve European Union member states: Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain; collectively also known as... January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... 2007 (MMVII) will be a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The privatization of state-owned firms is virtually complete, with only the port and the main power plants remaining in government hands. The constitution requires a balanced budget, and the protection afforded by Estonia's intellectual property laws is on a par of that of Europe's. In early 1992 both liquidity problems and structural weakness stemming from the communist era precipitated a banking crisis. As a result, effective bankruptcy legislation was enacted and privately owned, well-managed banks emerged as market leaders. Today, near-ideal conditions for the banking sector exist. Foreigners are not restricted from buying bank shares or acquiring majority holdings. Privatization (sometimes privatisation, denationalization, or, especially in India, disinvestment) is the process of transferring property, from public ownership to private ownership and/or transferring the management of a service or activity from the government to the private sector. ... 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ...

Tallinn's fully electronic stock exchange opened in early 1996 and was bought out by Finland's Helsinki Stock Exchange in 2001. It is estimated that the unregistered economy provides almost 12% of annual GDP. County Harju County Mayor Jüri Ratas Area 159. ... The Helsinki Stock Exchange (Helsingin Pörssi) (HEX), is a stock exchange located in Helsinki, Finland. ...

Estonia is nearly energy independent supplying over 90% of its electricity needs with locally mined oil shale. Alternative energy sources such as wood, peat, and biomass make up approximately 9% of primary energy production. Estonia imports needed petroleum products from western Europe and Russia. Oil shale energy, telecommunications, textiles, chemical products, banking, services, food and fishing, timber, shipbuilding, electronics, and transportation are key sectors of the economy. The ice-free port of Muuga, near Tallinn, is a modern facility featuring good transshipment capability, a high-capacity grain elevator, chill/frozen storage, and brand-new oil tanker off-loading capabilities. The railroad, privatized by an international consortium in 2000, serves as a conduit between the West, Russia, and other points to the East. Pumpjack pumping an oil well near Sarnia, Ontario Petroleum (from Greek petra – rock and elaion – oil or Latin oleum – oil ), crude oil, sometimes colloquially called black gold or Texas Tea, is a thick, dark brown or greenish liquid. ... Oil shale is a general term applied to a group of fine black to dark brown shales rich enough in bituminous material (called kerogen) to yield petroleum upon distillation. ... BlackBerry 7100t Telecommunications is the communication of information over a distance. ...

Estonia still faces challenges. Agricultural privatization has caused severe problems for farmers needing collateral to be eligible for loans. The income differential between Tallinn and the rest of the country is widening. Standards of living have eroded for the large portion of the population on fixed pensions. The formerly industrial northeast section of Estonia is undergoing a severe economic depression as a result of plant closings.

During recent years the Estonian economy has continued to grow. Estonian GDP grew by 6.4% in the year 2000 and by 5.4% in 2001. Inflation declined modestly to 5.0% in the year 2000 (the estimate for 2001 is 4.8%). The unemployment rate in 2001 was 12.6%. Estonia joined the World Trade Organization in 1999 and the European Union (EU) in 2004. This article is about the year 2000. ...

Foreign Trade

SEB Bank building in Tallinn, Estonia, one of the products of Estonia's Baltic Tiger boom

Estonia's liberal foreign trade regime, which contains few tariff or nontariff barriers, is nearly unique in Europe. Estonia also boasts a national currency which is freely convertible at a fixed exchange rate and conservative fiscal and monetary policies. Estonia has free trade regimes with European Union (which it is a member of) and EFTA countries and also with Ukraine. Image File history File links SEB_Estonia. ... Image File history File links SEB_Estonia. ... A glass skyscraper – an icon of Estonias economic boom Baltic Tiger is a term used to refer to any of the three Baltic states - Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania - during their periods of economic boom, which started after the year 2000 and continues up to the present moment. ... The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) was established on May 3, 1960 as an alternative for European states that were not allowed or did not wish to join the European Community (now the European Union). ...

Estonia, being a small country of 1.4 million people, relies on its greatest natural asset--its location at the crossroads of East and West. Estonia lies just South of Finland and across the Baltic Sea from Sweden. To the East are the huge potential markets of northwest Russia. Having been a member of former Soviet Union, Estonians know how to do business in Russia and in other former Soviet countries. Estonia's modern transportation and communication links provide a safe and reliable bridge for trade with former Soviet Union and Nordic countries. According to the RIPE Network Coordination Centre (at http://www.ripe.net ), Estonia has the highest Internet connected hosts/population ratio in central and eastern Europe and also is ahead of most of the EU countries. Latest surveys indicate that 39% of the Estonian population regard themselves as Internet users. Twenty-five percent of the Estonian population conducts its everyday banking via Internet. Réseaux IP Européens is a collaborative forum open to all parties interested in wide area IP networks. ...

See also

• Economy of Europe
• Estonia