Albania, last in Europe for income and consumption per capita in 2023

2024-06-19 11:58:00, Ekonomi CNA

Albania, last in Europe for income and consumption per capita in 2023

Illustrative photo, taken from Google

Although the Albanian economy has had a good performance after the pandemic and tourism has reached records, this is not translating into more well-being for the country's citizens.

The latest Eurostat data, updated for 2023, places Albania again at the bottom of Europe for per capita income at 35% of the European average, up from 34% in 2022. Albania is on par with Bosnia , while the data for Kosovo are missing.

The economic growth mainly driven by the high flow of constructions and sales of real estate, or the high number of tourists does not seem to have improved the well-being of Albanians in the last two years.

North Macedonia had an income of 41% of the EU, with a decrease of one percentage point from the previous year. Serbia had this indicator 46%, from 44% the previous year. The highest level in the region is in Montenegro, with 52%, from 50% the previous year.

Even in another indicator, that of individual consumption per capita (AIC), which measures the purchasing power of goods and services, Albania ranks last, with 42% of the European average, from 41% the previous year, being ranked last in Europe, 2 percentage points less than Bosnia and Herzegovina which has increased this indicator to 44% (in 2022 we were at the same levels). The highest level has Montenegro with 65% (from 63% in 2022), followed by Serbia with 54%, with an increase of 1 percentage point and North Macedonia with 52%, from 50% in 2022.

According to Eurostat's explanation, although GDP per capita is an important and widely used indicator of the level of economic well-being of countries, per capita consumption may be more useful for comparing the relative well-being of consumers in different countries.

During 2023, the Albanian economy grew by 3.4%, slowing down compared to 2022's 4.86% expansion. About half of this growth came from construction and real estate, which expanded by 9.7% and 11.3% respectively. It seems that this growth that is coming from construction is not managing to improve the well-being of Albanians, who continue to remain the poorest in Europe.

Europe

In 2023, Actual Individual Consumption (AIC) per capita expressed in purchasing power standards (PPS) ranged from 70% to 138% of the EU average in the 27 EU countries. AIC includes all goods and services used by households, regardless of whether they are purchased and paid for by households directly, by the government, or by non-profit organizations.It can be considered an indicator of the material well-being of households.

In 2023, 10 EU countries recorded AIC per capita above the EU average. The highest levels were recorded in Luxembourg (38% above the EU average), Austria and the Netherlands (both 17%).

Meanwhile, 17 EU countries scored AIC per capita below the EU average, with the lowest levels recorded in Hungary (30% below the EU average), Bulgaria (27%), Slovakia and Latvia (both 25 %).

Luxembourg and Ireland have the highest GDP per capita

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita, a measure of economic activity, also showed substantial differences between EU members.

GDP per capita above the EU average was recorded in 11 EU countries. It was highest in Luxembourg (139% higher than the EU average), Ireland (111%) and the Netherlands (30%). On the other hand, the lowest GDP per capita was recorded in Bulgaria (36% below the EU average), Greece (33%) and Latvia (29%). /Monitor

Albania, last in Europe for income and consumption per capita in 2023