Finland is a highly industrialized economy, being highly competitive in manufacturing wood, metals, engineering, telecommunications, and electronics industry.

(Source: eubusiness.com)

Gross domestic product (GDP)

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at current prices for 2009 was EUR 171.3 billion, down from EUR 184.6 billion in 2008.  The annual change in volume of GDP was -8.0%. The services sector contributed 69.2% to the GDP, followed by secondary production (industry and construction) with 28.2% and finally, Agriculture with 2.7%.

(Source: Statistics Finland)

(Source: Statistics Finland)

Finland’s GDP has been declining since 2007. Specifically, it decreased from 5.3% in 2007 to 0.9% in 2008 and proceeded to fall further down to -8% in 2009. The volume growth of the country’s GDP in Q3 2010 was 3.5%.

The country’s GDP per capita for 2009 was EUR 32,088, compared to EUR 34,752 in 2008.

(Source: Statistics Finland)

Gross national income

Finland’s gross national income (GNI) was EUR 171 billion in 2009, making a reduction of 8.2% from the previous year.

(Source: tilastokeskus.fi)

In 2010, GNI per capita at PPP of the country was registered at USD 33,872 as compared to USD 33,408 in 2005.

(Source: UNDP)

Finland’s net national income in 2009 was EUR 142.19 million, compared to EUR 156.15 million for 2008.

(Source: tradingeconomics.com, Statistics Finland, Statistics Finland)

In 2009, exports in Finland amounted to EUR 64.0 billion, while imports were valued at EUR 59.8 billion. Hence, in 2009, the balance of trade was a surplus of EUR 4.2 billion.

(Source: Statistics Finland)

Income tax rate

Income tax on Individual incomes in Finland is taxed progressively from 6.5% to 30%.

(Source: worldwide-tax)

Corporate tax rate

Standard corporate tax rate in Finland is 26%.

(Source: vero.fi, worldwide-tax, Ministry of Finance, nordisketax, overseas real estate)

Foreign direct investment

In the past two years, Finland has witnessed more outflow of investment than inflow. In 2009, the foreign investment in Finland was EUR 1 million, whereas in 2008 it was EUR 704 million. The country’s direct investment inflows in 2009 were EUR 1.8 billion. Finnish direct investment in other countries in 2009 was EUR 2,761 million, marking a reduction of 56.5% from EUR 6,349 million in 2008.

(Source: Bank of Finland)

Inflation rate

The average inflation rate in Finland in 2010 was 1.2%. The inflation, in terms of consumer price change (annual %), for 2009 was registered at 0.0%.

(Source: Statistics Finland)

Banking sector assets

Net financial assets of Central Bank of Finland

(Source: Statistics Finland)

Net Financial Assets of the central bank, the Bank of Finland, have seen a steady rise in the last three years. Financial assets in the year 2005 were EUR 4,996 million which was a growth of 6.9% over the previous 5 years.

Consumer price index

The consumer price index (CPI) in Finland has been on a steady rise from 2005. The index figure for 2008 and 2009 was 108.34.

Official exchange rate

The value of one Euro in US Dollars was 1.32. Additonally, the exchange rate for one Euro in Japanese Yen (JPY) was 110.11.

Government finances

Total revenue

(Source: eurostat.ec)

Finland’s government revenue increased by 7% in Q3 2010.  In terms of value, revenues grew by EUR 1.5 billion. Additonally, the government expenditure also increased by 4%, or EUR 1.0 billion.

(Source: Statistics Finland)

Tax revenue

In 2009, the country’s tax revenue was EUR 33.8 billion, a decrease of approximately 15%, compared to the previous year. The net tax ratio (tax ratio after subsidies, and current and capital transfers paid by general government to households and enterprises) in 2009 was 18.4%, compared to 21.8% in 2008. The fall in net tax ratio was attributed to growth in public transfers, especially social security benefits paid.

(Source: Statistics Finland)

Current account balance

Balance of payments

(Source: Bank of Finland)

The labour force in Finland was recorded at 2.68 million people in 2009, making a decrease of approximately 1% from the previous year’s labour population of 2.7 million.

The unemployment rate in the country decreased steadily from 2000 to 2008. However, in 2009 the unemployment rate increased to 8.2% from 6.4% in 2008.

(Source: Statistics Finland)

The labour force rate in Finland was 66.5% for 2009, with an employment rate of 68.3%.

(Source: Statistics Finland)

Minimum wage

Minimum wage is EUR 410.

(Source: wageindicator.org)

Level of unionisation

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) ranked Finnish unions amongst the most effective globally. The major unions in Finland include:

• Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions (SAK)
• The Finnish Confederation of Professionals (STTK)
• Confederation of Unions for Professional and Managerial Staff in Finland (AKAVA)

The trade unions run unemployment funds and provide unemployment benefits. The unions also safeguard the rights of their members and strive to improve benefits including income development, employment security, and quality of work life.    

(Source: expat-finland)                                                                              

Government stability

Finland functions under a Parliamentary Democratic system of government, with a President and a Prime Minister. The political parties active in the country include:

• National Coalition Party
• Centre Party
• The Social Democratic Party of Finland
• Left Alliance
• Green League
• Swedish People’s Party of Finland
• Christian Democratic
• True Finns Party

(Source: Parliament of Finland)

Of these, the Social Democratic Party, Centre Party and National Coalition Party are the main parties.

The current president, Tarja Halonen, of the Social Democratic Party, won the presidential elections in 2006 and was re-elected for a second consecutive term. Presidential elections are held every six years in Finland.

The prime minister and the deputy prime minister are nominated by the president after the parliamentary elections.  However, the Eduskunta (parliament) must approve the president's nominations.

Mari Kiviniemi has been the Prime Minister of Finland since June 2010, and is also the leader of the Centre Party.

The political risk in Finland is very low, because of the country’s sound government.

The government is currently using an expansionary fiscal policy to encourage economic growth, helping the country to achieve a level of economic stimulus without large deficits.

With regards to the country’s foreign policy, the president co-ordinates with the prime minister, the minister for foreign affairs and other ministers responsible for foreign relations.

(Source: ambest.com, state.gov)

Regulatory environment

(Source:Heritage.org)

The country has an economic freedom score of 74, making its economy the 17th freest in the 2011 Index of Economic Freedom. Finland ranks 8th out of the 43 European countries. Finland’s overall score is above the global and regional averages, ranking it amongst the freest countries.

Corruption perception

The Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) is a survey to measure the perceived level of corruption across countries worldwide. Finland is ranked fourth on this list with a score of 9.2, indicating the low levels of corruption in the public sector. The only countries ranked above Finland are Denmark, New Zealand, and, Singapore.

(Source:transparency.org)

Freedom of information

Law in Finland gives freedom to every citizen to publish printed materials and guarantees the right of reply.  The World Press Freedom Index 2010 ranks Finland first with a score of zero, indicating the complete liberty for media in Finland.

(Source: rsf.org)

Newspaper

Major newspapers in Finland include:

• Helsingin Sanomat (Helsinki daily, English-language pages)
• Helsinki Times (English-language)
• Ilta-Sanomat (Helsinki, evening daily)
• Iltalehti (Helsinki, evening daily)
• Hufvudstadsbladet (Helsinki, Swedish-language daily)
• Aamulehti (Tampere, daily)
• Turun Sanomat (Turku, daily)

(Source: BBC)

Judicial system

The judiciary in Finland consists of:

• The Supreme Court
• Courts of Appeal
• District Courts
• Administrative courts
• The Supreme Administrative Court
• Special courts

The Supreme Court is the highest court of justice, the main fuction of which is to ensure uniformity in administration of justice by the lower courts by establishing judicial precedents. The Supreme Court also advises the President of the Republic in cases concerning his/her right to grant a pardon. It also advises the Ministry of Justice in cases concerning extradition and opines on government bills during the legislative process.

Special courts in Finland include: the Market Court, the Labour Court, the Insurance Court and the High Court of Impeachment.

(Source: oikeus.fi, kko.fi)

Total population

The total population of Finland in 2009 was 5.35 million, increasing 0.5% over the previous year.

Gender balance

In 2009, the total female population was 2.72 million and the male population was 2.62 million, making the gender ratio in the country with 96.1 males per 100 females.

(Source: UN)

Population by age structure

In 2009, there were 888,323 persons between 0-15 years, accounting for 16.6% of the total population. In the same year, 17% of total population was 65 years of age and above.

(Source: Statistics Finland)

Mortality rate and birth rate

The infant mortality rate was registered at 3.2 per thousand births during the period of 2005-2010. The total mortality rate in the country for 2009 was 9 per thousand people. The birth rate in the country during 2009 was 11 per thousand populations.

(Source: UN, World Bank)

Life expectancy

Average life expectancy at birth for males and females in the same period was 76.2 years and 83 years respectively.

(Source: UN)

Migration and urbanisation

International migrant stock is 225,646 or 4.2% of the entire population (mid 2010).

(Source: Statistics Finland, UN)

Immigration in Finland saw a decline in 2009 as 26,700 people migrated to country from foreign countries,instead of the 2008 figure of 29,100. Similarly, emigration from the country also saw a fall, and was recorded at 12,150 persons.

(Source: Statistics Finland)

From 2005 to 2010, the urban population in the country grew at an average annual rate of 0.8%.  However, the rural population had a negative growth rate of -0.6% per year.

 (Source: UN)

Poverty and inequality

About 13% of the total population, between 600,000 and 700,000 people, live below the poverty line.

(Source: helsinkitimes.com)

Racial/ethnic environment

Ethnic groups in Finland are:

• Finns
• Swedes
• Lapps (Sami)
• Roma
• Tatars

Nearly 84% of the population is Evangelical Lutheran with Greek Orthodox and Christians constituting the minority.

(Source: state.gov, infoplease.com)

Human development index (HDI)

Finland ranked 10^th on United Nations’ Human Development Index in 2010 and is amongst countries with very high human development. The HDI provides a composite measure of three dimensions of human development: living a long and healthy life (measured by life expectancy), being educated (measured by adult literacy and gross enrolment in education) and having a decent standard of living (measured by purchasing power parity, PPP, income).

(Source: UNDP)

Literacy rate

The country’s literacy rate is estimated to be 100%.

(Source:finland.fi)

The Ministry of Education is responsible for education in Finland. Education until the age of 16 has been made compulsory. However, adult education in the country is very active as more than one-half of the population aged 25-64 participates in some kind of education or training. In 2009, 2.95 million persons attained post comprehensive level of educational qualifications in upper secondary general school education, vocational education, polytechnic education or university education.

(Source: Statistics Finland, euroeducation.net)

Education resources

The total educational expenditure for 2008 was EUR 10.7 billion, increasing 6.7% from the previous year.

Expenditure on education system (2008)

(Source: Statistics Finland)

Healthcare resources

Public healthcare is available to all residents of Finland despite their financial condition. The goal of healthcare in the country is to maintain and improve people's mental and physical functional capacity. The primary healthcare services are provided through municipal health centres, and specialised hospital care. The government insurance agency, KELA, assists the residents with reimbursement of medical expenses. The expenses reimbursed include doctor's fees, dental care costs, and examination and treatment charges, among others.

The expenditure on healthcare in 2008 was approximately EUR 15.5 billion or 8.4% of the GDP. The health expenditure per capita was EUR 2,908 in 2008. The main expenditures were for specialised health care at 32.7%, followed by primary healthcare at 18.4%.

(Source: expat-finland.com, stm.fi. stakes.fi)

The number of deaths in 2009 were 49,883, including, 25,150 males and 24,733 females.  Neoplasms, Ischaemic heart diseases, Dementia and Alzheimer's disease were the leading causes of death.

(Source: Statistics Finland)

Mass public transit

The means of mass public transport in the country are buses, trams, ferries, local trains and a subway/metro system. Railways in Finland link all the major cities and towns in the country. The country’s capital Helsinki is the main hub of railways.

Highways in Finland span 78,161 kilometers, while the length of railway lines is 5,919 kilometers.

(Source: Statistics Finland, interrail.net)

Ports

There are more than 50 ports in Finland. The major ports in the country include: the Port of Helsinki, Port of Kotka, Port of Turku, Port of Pori, Port of Rauma, Port of Kokkola and Port of Hamina.

(Source:world port source)

Airports

(Source: aircraft-charter-world)

Telecommunication network

(Source: Finnish Communications Regulatory Authority)

The country increased to about 4.5 million internet users in 2010. Specifically, 85.3% of the population used internet services, compared with 62.3% in 2006.

(Source: Internet world stats)