Year: 2022

Government disregarded the necessary structural reforms in the budget session

The Finnish Commerce Federation is disappointed that the Government still did not address Finland's structural problems in its budget session. Challenges related to the multiple tax wedge as well as incentives related to unemployment security and work were overlooked. The Government's temporary measures to compensate for the increased energy costs of households are welcome, but the high electricity tax on the commerce and service sectors and the possibility of utilising the huge potential of waste heat in the commerce sector were completely ignored.  

Retail sector's growth spurt is over – commerce and consumers face uncertainty

According to a recent forecast by the Finnish Commerce Federation, the volume of retail trade turnover will shrink by 2.5 per cent this year and more next year. The increase in turnover in euros will be driven solely by rising costs and prices. If Finland and Europe drift into recession, the fall in trade will deepen. Safeguarding purchasing power is essential for the development of trade, and therefore reducing labour taxation should be a top priority for the next government. A rising price-wage spiral will not support purchasing power.  

A comprehensive report from the service sectors: Half of all companies have difficulties with recruitment, the share of foreign labour is growing in a third of all companies  

According to the sector skill survey of the Service Sector Employers Palta, the Finnish Commerce Federation, the Finnish Hospitality Association MaRa and Finance Finland, half of the service companies in Finland have difficulties with recruiting competent labour. The sectors represented by the associations employ a total of about 1.3 million Finnish people, which is about two-thirds of the entire private sector. 

Turbulent times for household technology trade – Asian online stores cause wariness

The Finnish Commerce Federation research* found that Finnish people shopping for household technology most often turn to Gigantti, Prisma and Power stores and the Verkkokauppa.com online store. At the tail end of last year, the sales of household technology began to plummet from the high numbers bolstered by the pandemic, and the decline could continue for a long time to come due to logistical problems, COVID-19 lockdowns in China and component shortage. Finns are reluctant to buy used electronics, but this trend may change in coming years.