ZAGREB, Dec 15, 2020 – In 2019 Croatia remained second last among the EU 27 for Actual Individual Consumption (AIC) and GDP per capita, Eurostat data released on Tuesday indicate.
AIC per capita expressed in Purchasing Power Standards (PPS) notes Croatia being 34% below the EU average, Eurostat reported, confirming its June forecast.
Hungary was ahead of Croatia with an AIC per capita of 33%, while Bulgaria was at the bottom of the list with an AIC level of 42% below the EU average.
AIC per capita of more than 25% below the EU average was also registered in Latvia and Slovakia.
Romania registered the highest increase, bringing it on par with Poland, ‘only’ 21% below the EU average. In 2018 Romania was 26% below the EU average and in 2017 it was 30% below that average.
AIC in Portugal, the Czech Republic, Malta and Slovenia was between 10% and 20% below the EU average.
In Italy, Ireland, Cyprus, Lithuania and Spain, the levels were 10% or less below the EU average.
Nine countries above EU average
Only nine EU member states had a purchasing power that was above the EU average in 2019 and once again PPS varied between member states.
The highest level in the EU was recorded in Luxembourg, 35% above the EU average, ahead of Germany (22% above). They were followed by Austria, Denmark, Belgium, the Netherlands, Finland, France and Sweden with levels of 9% to 18% above the EU average.
GDP per capita continues to vary across EU member states
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita, a measure of economic activity, also shows substantial differences between the EU member states, Eurostat said.
Luxembourg once again topped the list for GDP expressed in PPS, two and a half times higher than the EU average.
Croatia once again found itself second last according to GDP per capita, at 35% below the EU average. In 2018 it was 36% below the EU average.
Bulgaria again ranked last at 47% below the EU average.
