ZAGREB, June 19, 2018 – In 2017, Croatia, Bulgaria and Hungary were the European Union member states with the lowest consumption per capita across the European Union, Eurostat said on Tuesday.
Based on first preliminary estimates for 2017, Actual Individual Consumption (AIC) per capita expressed in Purchasing Power Standards (PPS), only ten member states were above the EU average, the same as in 2016.
The highest level was recorded again in Luxembourg, 30% above the EU average. Germany and Austria were around 20% above, followed by the United Kingdom, Finland, Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, France, and Sweden which all recorded levels between 9% and 14% above the EU average.
Italy was closest to the average with 2% below.
AIC per capita for twelve member states lay between the EU average and 25% below. In Italy, Ireland and Cyprus the levels were 10% or less below the EU average, while Spain, Lithuania, Portugal and the Czech Republic were between 10% and 20% below. Malta, Greece, Slovenia, Poland and Slovakia were between 20% and 25% below the average.
Hungary and Croatia had AIC per capita just under 40% below the EU average and Bulgaria was 45% below.
Croatia was second to last among the member states in terms of ACI per capita as expressed in PPS, 39% below the EU. Bulgaria was last with 41% below.
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita, a measure of economic activity, also shows substantial differences between the EU member states. In 2017, GDP per capita expressed in PPS was again highest in Luxembourg, two and a half times above the average.
Ireland was second, nearly twice above the average, followed by the Netherlands, Austria, Denmark, Germany and Sweden, with GDP per capita about 25% above the average.
Italy, Malta and Spain were up to 10% below the average.
Croatia is second to last in GDP per capita, 39% below the average. In 2016, it was 41% below. Bulgaria is last with 51% below the average.
