Every year, Latvia will lose about 18,000 people — and this is already changing the economy. Despite rising incomes, the market is shrinking, and businesses have to contend not only with competition but also with disappearing buyers.
During the broadcast of the program "Naudas cena" on TV24, entrepreneur and investor Girts Rungainis voiced a concerning demographic forecast that directly impacts the economy and business environment of Latvia.
According to him, based on a recent study, the situation will worsen: "By 2040, Latvia will be losing 18,000 people every year."
The expert emphasized that this is not just a statistic, but a direct blow to the consumer market: "What do you think — these 18,000 people make purchases to some extent every day! That’s one percent of the population annually." Rungainis explained that even with economic growth, it does not compensate for demographic losses: "At the same time, we have economic growth, albeit very weak. This means that people theoretically have more money, but the fact that people are getting richer does not mean that their consumption of food increases proportionally."
Moreover, as incomes rise, the structure of spending changes: "The more money people have, the smaller the share they spend on food." As a result, some markets inevitably shrink: "It is clear that in certain segments, the market is objectively contracting. Not only is competition increasing, but the market itself is also decreasing."
