"I am glad that bilateral economic relations are dynamic and that American companies like "Western Union", "Phillip Morris", "Strategic Staffing Solutions" and "Thermo Fisher Scientific" chose to invest in Lithuania," said the prime Minister and emphasized that promotion of foreign investment is one of the Government's top priorities.
The Head of Government also stressed that next year Lithuania is joining the Eurozone, which will strengthen the economy. "Our country has achieved a higher position in the Global Competitiveness Report by improving its indices according to nine out of twelve criteria and making significant progress in the macroeconomic sector. [...] Lithuania successfully rose to the 17th place according to the research by the World Bank "Doing Business 2014" and came in 6th among the EU countries," informed the Head of Government.
The Prime Minister also pointed out that Lithuania is paying significant attention to the negotiations between the EU and the US on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership. "Even though the trade relations are highly liberalized, there are still numerous opportunities available for the development of trade relations and creating jobs on both sides of the Atlantic. We are improving the business environment by making favourable decisions, for instance, with the newly edited Law on Territorial Planning we are fundamentally changing the regulation of territorial planning and shortening the process. The adopted amendments to the Labour Code reduce the administrative burden of the employers. The amendments to the Law on the Legal Status of Foreigners have been approved; they simplify the procedures of issuing temporary residence permits for highly qualified specialists, posted workers and investors. Lithuania will be made even more attractive next year by the Euro," stated the Prime Minister.
The American-Lithuanian Business Council is engaged in the promotion of bilateral trade relations and investment, and takes care of the development of bilateral cooperation.
