Eurostat: Albania’s GDP per capita, consumption among Europe’s lowest

TIRANA, June 16 – Albania’s GDP per capita, a measure of economic activity and the actual individual consumption, an indicator of the material welfare of households, ranks among the poorest in Europe and in the region at almost a third of the EU 28, according to data published this week by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.

Albania’s GDP per capita expressed in purchasing power standard (PPS), an artificial currency unit that eliminates price level differences between countries, slightly climbed to 29 percent of the EU 28 average in 2014, up from 27 percent in 2013 ranking better only compared to Bosnia and Herzegovina’s 28 percent in a 37-country list which includes 28 EU member states, three EFTA members, five EU candidate countries and one potential candidate.

In 2014, GDP per capita expressed in PPS in the EU 28 ranged between 45 percent of the EU average in Bulgaria to 263 percent in Luxembourg.

Albania ranks worse in the Actual Individual Consumption (AIC), a measure of households’ material welfare consisting of goods and services actually consumed by individuals.

The AIC per capita expressed in PPS also climbed by 1 percent to 34 percent of the EU average in 2014 but continues ranking Albania the worst in the region and Europe. Albania lags behind even Bosnia and Herzegovina’s 37 percent in this indicator of households’ material welfare.

The AIC per capita expressed in PPS varied from 49 percent to 140 percent of the EU average across the member states.

Albania’s GDP per capita, an indicator of the standard of living, dropped to 2,904 Euros in 2013, the lowest level in the past seven years and the poorest among enlargement countries, according to data published by Eurostat.

At 2,904 euros in 2013, Albania’s GDP per capita was lower even compared to potential candidates Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina and at only 11 percent of the EU 27.

At around 8.4 billion euros in 2013, Albania which has a population of around 2.9 million people had a higher GDP compared to Kosovo, Macedonia and Montenegro which have smaller populations.

While Albania has one of Europe’s lowest GDP per capita, price levels for consumer goods and services are also among the lowest in 37 European countries, according to a recent report published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.

At 51 percent of the EU 28, Albania’s price level indices for consumer goods and services in 2013 was higher only compared to Macedonia’s 47 percent and Bulgaria’s 48 percent in a 37-country list. The results reconfirm that Albania is one of the cheapest countries to live in across Europe although it has the lowest wages in the Balkans.

Price levels for consumer goods and services among EU candidates and potential candidates in the region varied from 47 percent in Macedonia, to 53 percent in Bosnia and Herzegovina, 54 percent in Serbia, 56 percent in Serbia and 64 percent in Turkey.

Eurostat has also rated Albania’s electricity among the highest in the region.

Household electricity prices were already higher than in eight out 38 European countries in Albania at the end of 2014 just ahead of a new hike.

At Euro 11.6 per 100 kWh (VAT included), Albania’s household electricity prices in the second half of 2014 were already higher than EU members Bulgaria and Hungary and EU aspirants Montenegro, Macedonia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and on par to Iceland which has officially dropped its EU bid. Price in these countries vary from €5.9 per 100 kWh in Kosovo to €6 in Serbia, €8.1 and €8.2 in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Macedonia, €9.9 in Macedonia including all taxes and levies.

Albanians work the longest hours and are among the poorest paid in Europe, a survey published by the country’s state statistical institute, INSTAT, has found.

Albanians work an average of 2,102 hours a year and cost employers only Euro 2.2 per hour, ranking Albania the cheapest country in Europe in terms of labour costs for employers, but the worst in terms of income for employees.

In Albania, the average hourly labour cost, two-thirds of which includes wages and bonuses, is at least twice lower to regional EU aspirants such as Macedonia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro where labour costs range from Euro 3.5 to 5.8 an hour, according to INSTAT.

However, the differences with new EU members are narrower with Bulgaria ranking the second cheapest country with Euro 3.4 per hour and Romania being the fourth cheapest with Euro 4.1.

 Actual Individual Consumption (AIC) and GDP per capita in PPS in 2014, EU = 100

 (Source: Eurostat)