Money Buzz! Europa

Tag: europe

  • Europe: House prices up by 26.8%, rents up by 14.6% since 2010

    Europe: House prices up by 26.8%, rents up by 14.6% since 2010

    Over the period 2010 until the third quarter of 2020, rents increased by 14.6% and house prices by 26.8% in the European Union.

    When comparing the third quarter of 2020 with 2010, house prices increased more than rents in 16 EU Member States, Eurostat data shows.

    House prices increased in 23 Member States and decreased in four, with the highest rises in Estonia (+105.1%), Hungary (+92.2%), Luxembourg (+90.5%), Latvia (+83.6%) and Austria (+81.3%).

    Decreases were observed in Greece (-31.0%), Italy (-15.5%), Cyprus (-7.7%) and Spain (-4.5%).

    Different pattern for rents

    When comparing the third quarter of 2020 with 2010, rent prices increased in 25 EU Member States and decreased in two, with the highest rises in Estonia (+136.6%), Lithuania (+106.9%) and Ireland (+62.2%).

    Decreases were recorded in Greece (-25.2%) and Cyprus (-4.5%).

  • 61% of Europeans don’t trust public authorities with their personal data

    61% of Europeans don’t trust public authorities with their personal data

    European Commission latest data, analysed by Reboot Online, show which European citizens trust the public authorities in their country with personal data the least.

    This show that citizens in Spain (78%) trust the public authorities with their personal data the least.

    In second position is Ireland, where 73% of people are skeptical about how public authorities in the country handle their personal data.

    Belgium, France and the United Kingdom are in joint third place as 68% of citizens in each country lack confidence in the public authorities’ ability to oversee their personal data in a secure and diligent manner.

    In fourth spot is Bulgaria, where 67% of citizens do not have full faith in the management of their personal data by public authorities.

    Latvia and Romania are among the European countries where 60% of citizens mistrust the way public authorities keep and utilise their personal data, respectively ranking joint ninth.

    On the other end in 19th place, it seems individuals in Finland are most assured by public authorities’ supervision of their personal data, with only 29% of Finns questioning the security of their personal data with public authorities.

    Just above Finland is Estonia in 18th position, where 2 in 5 citizens are not entirely convinced if public authorities in the country are competently looking after their personal data.

    Interestingly, on average from all the assessed countries, 61% of Europeans don’t trust public authorities with their personal data. 

  • European Union to buy another 100 million doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine

    European Union to buy another 100 million doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine

    European Union new agreement with Pfizer and BioNTech could double coronavirus vaccine stocks, Bloomberg reports.

    According to Bloomberg sources, the new contract would include 100 million doses of the vaccine as well as an option for another 200 million doses.

    EU steps to secure new doses vaccine come a week after the European Commission decided to exercise its option to buy an additional 100 million doses of the coronavirus vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech.

    The European Commission has already ordered 200 million doses of this vaccine.

    In total, the EU has signed agreements for 1.3 billion doses of vaccine with Pfizer / BioNTech, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca / Oxford, Sanofi / GSK and CureVac, with options to purchase another 660 million doses.

  • Nissan to further cut its presence in Europe

    Nissan to further cut its presence in Europe

    Nissan intends to further cut its presence in Europe and outsource its car manufacturing and sales operations to alliance partner Renault, Japanese publication Yomiuri reported.

    Nissan will reduce its distribution channels in 30 countries, especially in Eastern Europe.

    The company also plans to close its plant in Avila, Spain, and turn it into a warehouse, according to Yomiuri, who did not provide details on the level of outsourcing of Nissan’s operations.

    To make a profit, Nissan recently decided to cut hundreds of jobs at its plant in Sunderland (UK) and close its plant in Barcelona (Spain).

    Over the next four years, Nissan will cut its production capacity by a fifth and the range of models to reduce its fixed costs by 300 billion yen ($ 2.8 billion).

  • Eurostat: 15% of all EU employees are low-wage earners

    Eurostat: 15% of all EU employees are low-wage earners

    In 2018, 15.3% of employees in the European Union (EU) were low-wage earners (this means that they earned two-thirds or less of their national median gross hourly earnings) compared to 16.4% in 2014.

    18.2% of female employees were low-wage earners in 2018, compared with 12.5% of male employees.

    In 2014, 19.9% among female employees and 13.2% among males were low wage earners.

    Highest share of low-wage earners in Latvia, lowest in Sweden

    The proportion of low wage earners varied significantly among EU States in 2018.

    The highest share was observed in Latvia (23.5%), followed by Lithuania (22.3%), Estonia (22.0%), Poland (21.9%) and Bulgaria (21.4%).

    In contrast, less than 10% of employees were low-wage earners in Sweden (3.6%), Portugal (4.0%), Finland (5.0%), Italy (8.5%), France (8.6%) and Denmark (8.7%).

    Low-wage earners accounted for more than a quarter (26.3%) of employees aged less than 30.

    The proportion of low-wage earners in the older age groups was much less, at 13.9% in the 50 and above age group and 12.6% in the 30-49 age group.

    More than a quarter (27.1%) of employees in the EU with a low education level were low-wage earners.

    Fewer employees with a medium level of education were low-wage earners (18.0% of employees), while low-wage earners accounted for just 4.6% of employees with a high education level.

    For employees whose contract of employment was of limited duration, 28.1% were low-wage earners, compared with 12.8% of those with an indefinite contract.

  • 59.5 million postcards were printed in the EU last year

    59.5 million postcards were printed in the EU last year

    This amount has been relatively stable since 2017, after substantial falls in the previous years. However, it fell by 41% compared to 2009, Eurostat reports.

    In 2019, more than two thirds of the postcards were printed in only three countries: Sweden (14.5 million; 24% of all postcards printed in the EU), Germany (13.9 million; 23%) and Spain (11.8 million; 20%).

    Decrease in the number of people working in postal and courier services

    In the EU, 1.5 million people, aged 15 or over, were employed in postal services in 2019. This is a 7% decrease compared to 2009.

    ”Postal services” include postal and courier activities, such as the pickup, transport and delivery of letters and parcels.

    Among those employed, 0.9 million were men, representing 58% of the total workers of this sector.

    In 2019, at EU level, on average 40 people per 10 000 inhabitants were working in the postal services sector. This is a decrease of 8% from 2009 (43 people per 10 000 inhabitants).

  • Euro zone: Four out of ten card transactions were made using contactless technology

    Euro zone: Four out of ten card transactions were made using contactless technology

    Euro area consumers are gradually shifting towards cards for in-person retail payments, although cash remained the most used instrument at the end of 2019, data published by the European Central Bank (ECB) show.

    Last year euro area adult consumers used cash for 73% of their point-of-sale and person-to-person retail transactions (48% in value terms).

    In a previous ECB study conducted in 2016, the figure was 79% of these transactions (54% in value terms).

    The use of cards for in-person retail payments increased by 5 percentage points over the same three years, from 19% to 24% (41% in value terms).

    Almost four out of ten card transactions were made using contactless technology in 2019.

    For their online shopping, euro area adult consumers paid mainly by card (49% of transactions) and one out of four online transactions was made using e-payment solutions.

    Four out of ten bill payments were made using direct debit and two out of ten by credit transfer.

    How Covid-19 pandemic changed payment behavior

    Four out of ten respondents replied that they had used cash less often since the start of the pandemic. While most of those who fell into this category expected to continue to do so after the pandemic, the long-term impact on payment behaviour is still uncertain.

  • Households in the EU have devoted almost a quarter of income to housing costs

    Households in the EU have devoted almost a quarter of income to housing costs

    In 2019, nearly a quarter (23.5%) of household consumption expenditure was devoted to ”Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels”, Eurostat reports.

    This is the EU’s largest household expenditure item by far, ahead of ”Transport” (13.1%) and ”Food and non-alcoholic beverages” (13.0%), followed by ”Restaurants and hotels” as well as ”Recreation and culture” (both 8.7%).

    The remaining household spending was distributed over ”Furnishings, household equipment and routine household maintenance” (5.5%), ”Clothing and footwear” (4.6%) and ”Health” (4.4%).

    ”Alcoholic beverages, tobacco and narcotics” stand at 4.0% of household consumption expenditure, ”Communications” account for 2.4%, ”Education” (0.9%) and ”Other” (11.2%).

  • Top 500 CEE largest companies aggregated turnover increased by 5.5%

    Top 500 CEE largest companies aggregated turnover increased by 5.5%

    • The aggregated turnover of the 500 largest companies in CEE increased by 5.5% to EUR 740 billion.
    • 373 listed companies (which is 74,6% of all companies compared to 79% in 2018 and 80% in 2017) recorded an increase in revenues.

    Consequently, only 25.4% recorded a stagnation or a decrease. The average turnover of the 500 largest companies increased to EUR 1,480 million, compared to EUR 1,396 million in 2018.

    Poland still leads in CEE

    Poland gained first place in both the number of companies and the turnover generated, with aggregated Polish companies’ revenues rising by 6.6%, reaching EUR 283.7 billion.

    Even though the number of Polish companies included in the CEE Top 500 ranking decreased by 12 (i.e. from 175 to 163 companies), its industrial structure remains the most diversified but none of the largest industries dominate.

    The second place belongs to the Czech Republic, with a total of 78 companies, corresponding to an aggregated turnover of EUR 115.4 billion, which increased by 2.3%.

    Hungary dropped to third place. Its total turnover, however, rose much more than the regional average as it accelerated by 6.3%.

    Pole position for automotive & transport, followed by oil & gas

    60% of the revenue generated in CEE is allocated to the largest companies, represented by three key sectors: automotive & transports, oil & gas, and non-specialized trade. The largest increase in turnover was recorded in textiles, leather, and clothing (+23.2%), and construction (+13.6%).

    The top three companies of CEE Top 500, well known from previous rankings, are Polish PKN Orlen (1st place), Czech Skoda Auto (2nd), and the multinational oil and gas company MOL Hungary (3rd).

    It is worth mentioning those companies which made a giant leap in the ranking: Polish Totalizator Sportowy (53) moved up 114 places with revenues that soared by 80%.

    Strabag Poland (197) generated 40% higher revenues compared to the previous year and gained 86 places. Bulgarian Astra Bioplant Ltd (219), a manufacturer of biodiesel fuel, moved up 155 places in the ranking with turnover increasing by 61%.

    Slovak gas transmission operator Eustream (286), with the highest improvement in the ranking, gained even 255 places as its revenues rose by 76%.

    Based solely upon the number of companies, the automotive & transport sector is once again the largest (1st place). In 2019, sales of new vehicles were weaker than in previous years but still recorded positive dynamics.

    The second place in the CEE Top 500 ranking with 89 companies (17.8%), belongs to minerals, chemicals, petroleum, plastics, and pharmaceuticals. Its turnover remains the highest in 2019 – a total of EUR 172.1 billion.

    CEE companies in the sector primarily operate in the downstream segment, i.e. the refining and processing of oil and gas. Non-specialized trade is represented by 73 companies in the current ranking (+2), which puts this sector in third position with a turnover of EUR 113 billion (+9.8%).

    The average rating score is 6.2, with the weakest companies being based in Latvia, Poland, and the Czech Republic, while the strongest ones are in Croatia and Bulgaria. 

  • EU household saving rate recorded its highest year-over-year increase

    EU household saving rate recorded its highest year-over-year increase

    In the second quarter of 2020, the EU household saving rate recorded its highest year-over-year increase since the time series began at +10.8 percentage points (pp), Eurostat reports.

    The main reason behind this was a marked 17.3% year-on-year decline in household final consumption expenditure. This drop in household final consumption expenditure was in stark contrast with the decrease of 1.8% in the last quarter and recent increases in excess of 2%.

    Compared with the second quarter of 2019, the household saving rate increased in all but one of the Member States (for which data are available) in the second quarter of 2020.

    Sweden was the only Member State where there was a decline (-0.6pp), while the highest year-over-year increase was observed for Ireland (+22.0 pp), followed by Spain (+13.7 pp).

    The increase in the household saving rate in the majority of the countries with available data is mainly explained by the large decrease in household individual consumption expenditure.

    The largest decreases in household expenditure were observed for Spain (-23.9%) and Ireland (-22.8%), while the lowest decreases were noted in Czechia (-4.4%) and Denmark (-7.7%).

  • EU to impose additional tariffs on „Made in USA” products

    EU to impose additional tariffs on „Made in USA” products

    The European Union will impose additional tariffs on American products, European Commission Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis announced on Monday, AFP and DPA reported.

    On October 26, the World Trade Organization (WTO) formally authorized the European Union to impose additional tariffs on US products worth nearly four billion dollars (3.37 billion euros).

    Europe has already prepared a long list of US products that could be targeted by the new tariffs, a list that includes airplanes, wines, spirits, tractors, frozen fish and frozen orange juice.

    Last month’s WTO decision, to the benefit of the EU, comes about a year after the institution granted the US the right to impose additional tariffs on European products worth $ 7.5 billion, due to illegal subsidies granted by the European Union to Airbus.

  • EU new cars market: Hybrids at a 12.4% market share in Q3 2020

    EU new cars market: Hybrids at a 12.4% market share in Q3 2020

    In the third quarter of 2020, almost one in 10 passenger cars sold in the EU was an electrically-chargeable vehicle (9.9%), compared to 3.0% during the same period last year.

    During the third quarter, cars powered by conventional internal combustion engines lost further ground, with their overall market share going down from 88.6% in July-September 2019 to 75.4% this year.

    Diesel cars accounted for 27.8% of total passenger car sales in the European Union, with registrations falling by 13.7% to 766,146 units.

    Petrol sales posted an even stronger drop (-24.3%), going from over 1.7 million units last year to 1.3 million units in the third quarter of 2020.

    This represents a market share of 47.5%, with petrol going below the mark of 50% for the first time since 2016.

    With the exception of Cyprus, all EU markets saw declines in demand for petrol cars during the three-month period, including the four major markets.

    From July to September 2020, registrations of electrically-chargeable vehicles (ECV) more than tripled (+211.6%) to reach 273,809 units and a market share of 9.9%.

    This strong growth is mainly due to the introduction of incentives by national governments, seeking to boost demand in response to the corona crisis, which has been largely to the benefit of buyers of battery and plug-in electric cars.

    As a result, demand for plug-in hybrids (PHEV) boomed (+368.1%) during the third quarter, going from 29,557 units last year to 138,348 new cars sold in 2020. Both Germany and France recorded percentage increases of over 400% each.

    Growth in registrations of battery electric vehicles (BEV) was also strong across the European Union (+132.3%), totalling 135,461 units over the three-month period.

    Hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) remained the bestselling alternatively-powered vehicle type in the EU, posting an increase of 88.8% in the third quarter of the year.

    In total, 341,092 hybrid electric cars were sold from July to September 2020, representing 12.4% of the EU car market.