Even if a methanol plant is eventually built in Pärnu with the help of various support schemes, it doesn't change the fact that by the time it starts producing, we will have lost out on many years of higher value added output from the cellulose or wood chemical industry, which does not require subsidies, and an unnecessary blow has been delivered to our own entrepreneurs' wish/assurance to invest in Estonia.
Unfortunately, nor is the development of the IT sector, which we claim to be relying on, free from political scandals and attempts to hinder progress. If this continues, we cannot expect this sector to be a growth engine either.
However, the most concise way to get an idea of the importance of innovation for our export-oriented industrial production is to look at the dynamics of our exports as a share of total world exports and compare it with that of our competitors.
Unfortunately, nor is the development of the IT sector, which we claim to be relying on, free from political scandals and attempts to hinder progress.
While in the early 2000s, Estonia and Lithuania accounted for almost the same percentage of global exports, 0.05 percent, and Latvia's exports for one-fifth less, by the beginning of last year Lithuania had managed to triple its share of global exports to 0.15 percent. While Estonia's share of global exports also grew in nominal terms to 0.075 percent, Latvia's exports reached a par with ours in the middle of the last decade. And what's worse, while our exports have declined in recent years, Latvia's exports have remained relatively stable. (Data from the IMF report.)