Although 2022 posed significant challenges for Kaunas as well as Lithuania and the world, after summarizing the annual results and observing the trends, we could say that the year was quite successful for the city. Priority business sectors have not only demonstrated resilience to the challenges but have also grown, continuing to increase the number of foreign investors and the value they create across the region. And at the same time, the number of employees and the average salary had increased in the city.
“Working with the city’s investment environment and feeling its pulse and current affairs very well, we mapped the most prominent events and trends in the city of Kaunas. The overview of the business environment includes the latest statistical and economic data and priority business sectors, changes in higher education institutions, and investments in business infrastructure in Kaunas. This is the second annual overview, which contains concise and accurate information that allows you to get to know the economic processes taking place in Kaunas better and at the same time helps in making decisions,” Tadas Stankevičius, head of VšĮ Kaunas IN, says.
As noted by the authors of the overview, the number of officially registered residents in Kaunas continues to grow for the fifth year, in addition, salaries and purchasing power has grown the fastest in the city in recent years compared to all other big cities in Lithuania. By the way, according to the housing affordability index, Kaunas residents can afford the largest homes compared to residents of other Lithuanian cities.
Large public investments in city spaces – avenues, streets, parks, city facades, and the abundance of newly opened leisure facilities – significantly changed the face of the city and improved the quality of life in Kaunas. According to the assessment of the Ministry of Finance, Kaunas is the leader in Lithuania both in terms of health and education services.
Historically, Kaunas has always had strong and large industries, such as food, furniture design and manufacturing, construction, education, and logistics. These sectors remain some of the largest employers in Kaunas, and some of the Kaunas companies operating in them are among the most innovative. The rapidly growing sectors of electronics and automotive components, life sciences, aircraft repair, and maintenance services (MRO), and IT and business service centers are especially promising for Kaunas.
However, as noted by Andrius Veršinskas, head of the business department of VšĮ Kaunas IN, who prepared the overview, good general trends do not mean that there are no more challenges, “While compiling the overview, we were not only happy with the achievements but also drew attention to the problems. For example, while we are excited about the growth of new residential spaces and the diversity of supply, we cannot help but notice the prevailing stagnation in the construction of new office buildings. And although office space rents in Kaunas still remain 20 – 30 percent smaller than in the capital, the rental supply of modern, especially more spacious, offices is falling rapidly, and developers are in no hurry to announce new constructions.”
The youthful and promising face of Kaunas is strongly shaped by the large student community. More than 33 thousand students attend the 12 universities and colleges operating in Kaunas in the 2022 – 2023 academic year, and that is more than a tenth of the city’s population. The biggest task for Kaunas today is to try to ensure that as many of these students as possible stay to live and work in the city after graduation.
