Estonia's economic output down by 15.3 pct in Q3

TALLINN, Estonia

Estonia's economy lost 15.3 percent of its value in the third quarter compared with a year ago, a slight improvement from the previous quarter as the recession stabilized somewhat, official data showed Thursday.

The state's statistics agency said the fall was slower than the 16.1 percent annual drop in the second quarter. In the first quarter, the Baltic country's economy had contracted by 15 percent.

Statistics Estonia said the economy was severely affected by shrinking domestic demand, contracting industrial production and sagging exports. But it stressed that wholesale and retail trade and the financial sector were the only areas where contraction deepened from the previous quarter.

The data is based on a flash estimate and could be revised to some degree, the agency said.

Estonia and its Baltic neighbors Latvia and Lithuania have currently the most troubled economies in the 27-member European Union. On Monday Latvia announced its third-quarter gross domestic product fell 18.4 percent year-on-year.