Inflation continues on a general downward trend registering 3.7 percent in September and is forecast to fall further to 3.5 percent by year-end, driven by lower prices for food and stability in oil prices. Foreign reserves are currently around $ billion, sufficient to cover 5.0 months of retained imports of goods and non-factor services.
The Baltic states, for instance, were seriously affected by the Russian crisis of 1998. Another case in point is the Czech banking crisis of the mid-1990s, which ultimately resulted in a foreign exchange crisis. •  Maybe we should see the achievement of EU membership as a shock in its own right.