Economy & Business

Finland’s bars, cafes, restaurants and nightclubs shut their doors to customers at midnight on Friday, as new rules came in to slow the spread of coronavirus, which keeps businesses closed until at least the end of May. But for many…

State railways operator VR Group says it is waiving the rents of cafes and restaurants on its station properties across the country for two months, because of the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Tennants won’t have to pay their…

Minister of Economic Affairs Mika Lintilä (Centre) says the coronavirus crisis "is the worst moment of Finland’s economic history" as he set out new help for entrepreneurs and medium-sized businesses. At a Friday morning press conference with Justice Minister Anna-Maja Henriksson…

The city of Savonlinna in Finland’s eastern lakeland region has started talks on lay-offs for municipal workers due to the impact of the coronavirus crisis. The move affects 560 people, and while a maximum of 50 staff can be switched…

The Confederation of Finnish Industries EK is warning that the coronavirus crisis could cause a wave of unemployment and bankruptcy worse than the 1990’s recession. A new survey by the organisation finds that almost 20% of employers fear bankruptcy; 42%…

Finnish homeware brand Fiskars, best known for its range of distinctive orange-handled scissors, is temporarily closing its Finnish business, and starting talks to cut staff. The company cites the coronavirus epidemic for negatively affecting consumer demand in its main markets. "The…

The Finnair departure gates at Helsinki Airport are empty for large parts of the day. The usual ebb and flow of flights – the morning rush to European capitals, the evening hustle of Asia-bound planes – replaced with just a…

The City of Helsinki is offering its business tenants a three month ‘rent holiday’ during the coronavirus pandemic. The idea is to lessen the financial impact the virus is having on a range of businesses, where customer numbers have dropped…

Espoo’s Remedy Entertainment, which has produced blockbuster gaming titles like Max Payne, Control, Quantum Break and Alan Wake, has signed a new deal with Epic Games to publish two of Remedy’s upcoming projects. Although no financial information is available for…

The Crazy Days campaigns are the most important and visible events of Finnish retailer Stockmann. But this year instead of drawing tens of thousands of people to their bricks and mortar stores, Stockmann is encouraging customers to do their shopping…