Albania buying power set at 48% of EU average

TIRANA, April 25 – The purchasing power of Albanian citizens is 48 percent of the European Union average. This, according to data compiled by the Statistical Office of the European Communities, Eurostat, which published a comparative analysis done in EU member states as well as in Balkan countries which are either candidate states or on their way to EU membership.
Purchasing power in neighboring Macedonia is set at 40 percent.
Residents of EU member state Bulgaria have even lower buying power at just 38 percent of the EU average, while Serbians stand at 45 percent. The other Balkan states, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Albania, stand at 48 percent, while Montenegro stands at 50 percent.
Greece, which has been the Balkans’ EU member for the longest time, has reached 86 percent of the average.
The purchasing power is defined as the value of money, as measured by the quantity and quality of products and services it can buy. It takes into account that prices in the Balkans are significantly lower than in western EU member states. Eurostat is the statistical agency of the European Commission. It produces data for the European Union and creates conforming statistical systems across member states. (Tirana Times Staff)