Finnish GDP growth slows, inflation and employment edge up
The Finnish economy remained robust in the spring and early summer, but there was a hint of slowing in June in data released Tuesday by Statistics Finland. The figures indicate that Finland’s seasonally adjusted GDP rose by half a percentage point between the first and second quarters. However seasonally adjusted output slipped by 3-tenths of a percent from May to June.
Meanwhile the number of people working was about two percent higher than a year earlier. The number of hours worked outpaced that, climbing by three percent in a year.
Fuel, tobacco and hotels drive inflation
Preliminary data for July suggest that inflation is on the rise. State number-crunchers estimate that consumer prices edged up by 1.4 percent last month on a year-on-year basis. In June the rate was 1.2 percent. Statistics Finland points to higher price tags on items such as petrol, cigarettes and hotel stays as driving the growth in inflation from June to July.
The central statistics office notes that these latest figures are still preliminary, promising more fine-grained data at the end of August.
Related stories from around the North:
Canada: Access to affordable housing a challenge in Northern Canadian cities, CBC News
Finland: Finland’s 2017 GDP growth revised upwards, Yle News
Norway: Russian sanctions are good business for Norwegian Oil Fund, The Independent Barents Observer
Russia: Population dropping in Northwestern Russia, The Independent Barents Observer
Sweden: Will Sweden scrap state pensions for thousands now living in Finland?, YLE News
United States: New farm bill program aims to fight food insecurity in Alaska, Alaska Public Media
