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Consumption level in EU shows huge divergence in 2014

Xinhua, June 17, 2015 Adjust font size:

An indicator issued on Tuesday showed that consumption levels varied hugely among the 28 European Union (EU) member states.

According to Eurostat, the EU's statistical body, the latest data measured the material welfare of households, what it calls Actual Individual Consumption (AIC).

The highest level of AIC per capita in the block was recorded in Luxembourg, at 40 percent above the EU average. Germany and Austria were around 20 percent above the average and Denmark, Belgium, Sweden, Britain, Finland, France and The Netherlands recorded levels between 10 percent and 15 percent above the average.

Meanwhile, six EU member states recorded AIC per capita more than 30 percent below the EU average. Estonia, Latvia and Hungary were between 30 and 40 percent below, while Croatia and Romania had AIC per capita between 40 percent and 45 percent below the EU average and Bulgaria was around 50 percent below.

Eurostat said gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, a measure of economic activity, also shows substantial differences between the EU member states.

In 2014, GDP per capita expressed in purchasing power standards (PPS) ranged between 45 percent of the EU average in Bulgaria to 263 percent in Luxembourg. Endit