Trade in Estonia in the Past and Present
Сергей Голубев
Introduction
In
this report, the commerce in Estonia is going to be described in different
periods of time.
Trade in the past
The
most important Estonian trading centers during Middle Ages were still Tallinn
and Narva, the first as a provincial centre and a transit harbor between
Western Europe and Russia. The Narva River served as a trading route to Pskov,
Novgorod and Moscow.
The
Baltic trade was taken over by foreign merchants, mostly from North Germany,
the Netherlands and later England.
The
most important export item was grain; flax from Russia and Estonia was the next
important. Russian shipbuilding materials, furs, wax and timber products were
sent to Western Europe via Tallinn. It was by sea that the main Estonian
imports such as salt (which was then taken to Russia and Finland), spices,
wine, fruit, salt, textiles etc. were imported from the West, mainly from Spain
and Flanders. Iron was shipped to Estonia from Sweden and tin from England.
The
trading items remained almost the same during the Middle Ages, and partly also
later.
Trade in our time
Nowadays
trade in the country has reached a significant level. Port of Tallinn is the
leading cargo port in Estonia, as well as an important transit center in
general. It handles most of the cargo flows between Russia and Western Europe.
Today
Estonia exports various products: electronic devices and components of all
kinds, and motor vehicle safety equipment, wood products, textiles, food
products, metals and chemical products also.
Machinery
and equipment, chemical products, foodstuffs, metal products, textiles are
being imported from Finland, Russia, Sweden, Germany and Japan.
Conclusion
Estonia
is situated on a busy trading route between East and West and has always had
excellent ports. It is clear that foreign trade and transit are therefore ever
more and more important to the Estonian economy.