Country Full Name: Republic of Latvia.

Location: Latvia is in Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Estonia and Lithuania.

Country Climate: Maritime; wet, moderate winters.

Country Terrain: Low plain.

Major Languages: Latvian, Russian.

Major Religions: Christianity.

Country Population: 2.3 million (2008 est.) 2.3 million (2009 est.).

Country Economy: The economy of Latvia was until the middle of 2008 the fastest growing economy in Europe. It has had high GDP growth since 2000. In 2003, GDP growth was 7.5% and inflation was 2.9%. Unemployment was 8.8% in 2003, almost unchanged compared to the previous two years. Privatization is mostly complete, except for some of the large state-owned utilities. In May 2004, Latvia joined the European Union.

Currency: Latvian Lats (LVL).

Country Inflation: 15.3% (2008 est.) 3.1% (2009 est.).

City: Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia.

City Economy: Riga is a major industrial, commercial, cultural and financial centre of the Baltics, and an important seaport.

Cost of Living: Riga has an overall cost of living index which equates it with middle cost of living locations. The overall cost of living index is comprised of the prices for defined quantities of the same goods and services across all 13 Basket Groups. Riga is currently ranked 147 overall, most expensive place in the world for expatriates to live, out of 282 international locations.

For more cost of living information on Latvia, Riga