Since 2000, the Lithuanian economy has flourished. With gross domestic product (GDP) growing on average 7% per year and salaries by 9.1% (reaching more than 15% in the past four years), this was an economic 'miracle'. The jobless rate was low, the currency stable.
Much of this miracle could be attributed to the expansive lending enabled by a steady flow of relatively cheap money that Scandinavian banks supplied to their subsidiary banks in Lithuania. This process helped to change consumption habits, boosted living standards and created sheer optimism about future.
