Money Buzz! Europa

Tag: europe

  • European consumers prefer cashless payments

    European consumers prefer cashless payments

    Cash is losing ground in Europe, given that 36% of respondents to the Payments and Open Banking survey, conducted by PwC, say they use cash in 2020, 7 percentage points less than two years ago.

    However, consumers’ reorientation towards cashless payments is not reflected in an increase in their willingness to share personal data with third parties – a condition for the development of “open banking”.

    Thus, only 20% of respondents are willing to provide financial data.

    Banks remain at the top of trust

    According to the survey, European respondents say they trust more traditional banks and card providers for the exchange of personal information (17%).

    Compared to 2018, both banks and card providers lost 4 percentage points of confidence.

    Among other players, payment service providers are trusted by 9% of respondents and retailers by 8%, internet giants by 7%, while banks that operate exclusively online (neobanks) and FinTech would receive data only from to 3% of European consumers.

    Benefits for data exchange

    The most desired benefit for consumers to exchange personal data for services other than banking is the discounts on shopping, while the popularity of other benefits for using “free banking” products or for automatic filing of tax returns are more reduced.

    Cards use is increasing

    Instead of cash, consumers use cards, e-wallets or applications. The use of debit cards is increasing, in 2020, to 31% compared to 27% in 2018, and that of applications and e-wallets to 14% from 11%.

    The reasons why Europeans use cash over other payment methods are as follows: 34% say they use it if no other payment is accepted, 26% for convenience, 13% because they have security concerns, and 20% have more control of expenses / budget.

    The preference for cash varies greatly and has decreased at a different rate, for example in Switzerland it has fallen in the last two years from 60% to 45% and in Italy from 52% to 38%.

    COVID-19 a catalyst for non-cash payments

    The COVID-19 crisis has influenced the behavior of European consumers when shopping in stores. Thus, 44% use physical cards more often and 9% smartphones (for example Apple Pay).

    Respondents believe that these payment behaviors are long-lasting and only one in five expects to return to previous habits.

  • Euro area unemployment at 8.1% in August 2020

    Euro area unemployment at 8.1% in August 2020

    In August 2020, the euro area seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate has continued to rise for 5 consecutive months, reaching 8.1%.

    The same trend has applied to the EU unemployment rate that reached 7.4% in August, show the latest figures published by Eurostat.

    Eurostat estimates that 15.603 million men and women in the EU, of whom 13.188 million in the euro area, were unemployed in August 2020.

    Compared with July 2020, the number of persons unemployed increased by 238.000 in the EU and by 251.000 in the euro area.

    In August 2020, 3.032 million young persons (under 25) were unemployed in the EU, of whom 2.460 million were in the euro area. In August 2020, the youth unemployment rate was 17.6% in the EU and 18.1% in the euro area, up from 17.4% and 17.8% respectively in the previous month.

    Compared with July 2020, youth unemployment increased by 64.000 in the EU and by 69.000 in the euro area.

    In August 2020, the unemployment rate for women was 7.6% in the EU, up from 7.5% in July 2020.

    The unemployment rate for men was 7.1% in August 2020, stable compared with July 2020.

  • European businesses are preparing for a historic recession

    European businesses are preparing for a historic recession

    Almost six in ten respondents at an Intrum survey say a Pan-European recession is a top three challenge when it comes to consumers paying on time over the next twelve months.

    In the survey, two measures among European companies clearly stand out. In order to protect their business in preparation for a recession and an economic upheaval, 38 per cent of respondents plan to cut costs, while 35 per cent will be more cautious about debt.

    29 per cent say they are looking to cut down on recruitment to prepare for a recession, compared to 18 per cent in 2019.

    ”Businesses are now taking necessary steps to prepare for a recession caused by the pandemic. Decreased revenues have reduced businesses’ cash flow and increased pressure on their outgoing payments”, says Mikael Ericson, President and CEO of Intrum.

    The payment gap is widening

    The estimated time between the agreed payment term and the actual duration of pay is now 14 days compared to 6 days in 2019 in B2B corporate payments.

    More than four in ten respondents (43 per cent) see risk from debtors increasing over the next twelve months and 19 per cent say it will increase significantly. Businesses are under increasing pressure by reduced liquidity, leaving many of them to search for alternative ways to free up cash.

    Nearly half (46 per cent) say the widening gap is a real risk to the sustainable growth of their business. During the crisis, more than half (51 percent) said that late payments threatened a liquidity squeeze for their business, compared to 35 percent of those surveyed before the crisis

    Real estate and construction hit hardest by late payments

    Intrum report highlights that businesses in the real estate and construction sector have been hit hardest by late payments. 41 per cent of these businesses say they now have accepted longer payments to avoid bankruptcy, whereas the European average is 35 per cent.

    At the same time, as previously reported, companies within hospitality and leisure still struggle with different government restrictions across Europe.

    Within this sector, four in 10 respondents (42 per cent) say that a recession will have a severe impact on their businesses – the highest figure of the 11 industries Intrum surveyed.

    Intrum has gathered data from 9.980 companies across 29 European countries covering 11 industry sectors. The survey was conducted during February to May 2020 (pre and during Covid-19).

  • 98% of Romanian pupils learned more than two languages in school

    98% of Romanian pupils learned more than two languages in school

    In the EU, 48% of the pupils in upper secondary education studied more than two languages in 2018. This share was higher than 80% in Romania (98%), Finland (94%), the Flemish community of Belgium (84%) and Luxembourg (82%).

    On the other end of the ranking, in Greece, only 1% of the students in upper secondary education studied more than 2 languages in 2018, Eurostat shows.

    English is the most commonly studied foreign language in the EU

    Almost 87% of pupils learned English in upper secondary education in 2018. English was followed by French (19%), German and Spanish (both around 18%). 

    In 2018, in all EU Member States more than 65% of students enrolled in upper secondary education were learning English as a foreign language, with the exception of Denmark (57%).

    Russian was the most commonly non-EU language learned in 2018 (2%) especially in Latvia (48%), Estonia (44%), Bulgaria and Lithuania (both around 26%). 

  • Passenger car registrations in Europe: -32% in the first eight months

    Passenger car registrations in Europe: -32% in the first eight months

    Over the first eight months of 2020, EU demand for passenger cars contracted by 32.0%. In total, 6.123.852 new cars were registered across the European Union from January to August, almost 2.9 million less than during the same period last year.

    In total, 6,123,852 new cars were registered across the European Union from January to August, almost 2.9 million less than during the same period last year.

    Among the EU’s largest markets, Spain saw the biggest decline (-40.6%) so far this year, followed by Italy (-38.9%), France (-32.0%) and Germany (-28.8%).

    During the month of August the EU car market posted a stronger decline (-18.9%) again, although less dramatic than earlier in the year.

    With the exception of Cyprus (+14.1%), all countries in the region recorded losses compared to August 2019.

    Looking at the four major EU markets, Italy performed best, with a slight drop of 0.4%, while the strongest declines were seen in Germany (-20.0%) and France (-19.8%).

    Data was provided by The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA).

  • European mayors to launch ”European Capital of Democracy” initiative

    European mayors to launch ”European Capital of Democracy” initiative

    This Friday, 18 September, mayors from various European countries will launch the Europe-wide initiative ”European Capital of Democracy” in Vienna.

    By launching the ”European Capital of Democracy Initiative”, mayors and international organisations want to make a real contribution to strengthening democracy in Europe.

    From 2021 onwards, each year one city will be awarded the title and thereby implement a comprehensive programme to strengthen democracy.

    Furthermore, international organisations will be invited to contribute by implementing activities in the respective city – international conferences, cultural festivals, educational programmes, summer camps for young citizens and much more.

    The initiative was founded by the Innovation in Politics Institute together with international partners.

    Who are the participants at the online launch Round Tables

    • Dubravka Šuica, Vice-President for Democracy and Demography, European Commission;
    • Kostas Bakoyannis, Mayor of Athens, Greece;
    • Jürgen Czernohorszky, Executive City Councillor for Education, Integration, Youth and Personnel of Vienna, Austria;
    • Aleksandra Dulkiewicz, Mayor of Gdansk, Poland;
    • Yordanka Fandakova, Mayor of Sofia, Bulgaria;
    • Peter Feldmann, Lord Mayor of Frankfurt am Main, Germany;
    • Zdeněk Hřib, Lord Mayor of Prague, Czech Republic;
    • Gergely Karácsony, Lord Mayor of Budapest, Hungary;
    • Hermano Sanches Ruivo, Deputy Mayor for European Affairs, Paris, France;
    • Rafał Trzaskowski, Mayor of Warsaw, Poland;
    • Matúš Vallo, Mayor of Bratislava, Slovakia;
    • Erion Veliaj, Mayor of Tirana, Albania.
  • Klarna, $650M funding round. It’s now the highest-valued fintech in Europe

    Klarna, $650M funding round. It’s now the highest-valued fintech in Europe

    Klarna announced it has raised $650 million in an equity funding round, at a post money valuation of $10.65 billion, which ranks Klarna as the highest-valued private fintech in Europe and the 4th highest worldwide.  

    The funding round is led by Silver Lake, alongside GIC – Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund – as well as funds and accounts managed by BlackRock and HMI Capital.

    Concurrently, Merian Chrysalis, TCV, Northzone and Bonnier have acquired shares from existing shareholders.

    They will join current investors such as Sequoia Capital, Dragoneer, Permira, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Bestseller Group and Ant Group in supporting Klarna’s future growth.

    The funding will help Klarna further invest in its unique shopping offering, continue to grow its global presence, and accelerate its strong momentum across all markets, especially in the US where the company is growing particularly rapidly and now has more than 9 million consumers. 

  • What payment methods do Europeans use and love

    What payment methods do Europeans use and love

    Around 13.000 people in 13 European countries were asked by ING how they pay and why they use their selected payment methods.

    When asked how true or untrue the statement ”The more payment options I have, the better” is, 25% across Europe considered the statement to be completely true. Opposed to this, 13% considered the statement not true at all.

    Subtracting the untrue from the true responses gives a net figure of 12% who consider the statement to be true.

    But there was considerable variation between countries ranging from a net low of -16% in the Netherlands, to a high of 36% in Romania.

    People employed full-time use an average of 5.3 different payment methods

    Those employed full-time use an average of 5.3 different payment methods, compared to 4.0 for those who are not working due to being unemployed.

    Similarly, those with a master’s or PhD use an average of 5.7 different payment methods, compared to 3.7 for those who did not finish high school.

    Consistent trends are also seen across incomes, those earning more than €7k per month use an average of 6.0 different payment methods, those without an income use an average of 3.1.

    People who own lots of technology devices tend to use more options

    Own 8 different devices and you will use an average of 10.2 different payment options, compared to the 3.1 that are used by those who own one piece of technology.

    This is potentially also a reflection of an early adoption mentality. Own more tech devices, be open to experimenting with the latest trends.

    Most people tend to use between four and six methods to make payments in-store and online

    In the last six months, three in-store payment options – cash (69%), bank card with pin (65%), and tapping a card without a pin (57%) – were used by more than half of survey respondents.

    To make online payments over the past month, two options dominated: entering card details on a website (42%) or using online payments system PayPal (48%).

    Very few Europeans, just 4%, say they prefer to use their phone to pay for small expenses in-store, over all other options, for example.

  • Tourism services in EU down by 75% in June compared with February

    Tourism services in EU down by 75% in June compared with February

    In June 2020, the tourism services sector fell by 75.0 %. Travel agencies and tour operators fell the most (-83.6%), followed by air transport (-73.8%), accommodation (-66.4%) and restaurants (-38.4%).

    Due to the opening up of restaurants and similar establishments, a recovery was observed in June compared with April.

    The restaurant sector had the largest recovery, followed by the accommodation sector. Air transport had only a slight recovery, while the travel agencies and tour operators sector was on the same level in June as in April.

    The accommodation sector in the EU had a value added of EUR 79.0 billion in 2017, corresponding to a share of 1.3% of value added of the non-financial business economy.

    Restaurants had a value added of EUR 96.4 billion, with a share of 1.6%. The corresponding shares for employment were 1.9% and 4.0%.

    Air transport and travel agencies and tour operator activities had shares of 0.5% and 0.3% respectively of value added of the non-financial business economy. The share of employment for air transport was 0.2%.

  • 6 out of 10 countries with highest national debt-to-GDP ratio are EU nations

    6 out of 10 countries with highest national debt-to-GDP ratio are EU nations

    Data presented by Buy Shares shows that six European Union countries make up the top ten nations with a highest National-to-GDP ratio.

    From the research, Japan has the highest ratio at 268.21%.

    U.S. debt continues to spike 

    Greece is second with a ratio of 214.29% while the Itlay is third at 156.92%. The United States has the fifth highest debt-to-GDP ratio at 136.69% while the United Kingdom is tenth at 100.87%.

    The Buy Shares report also overviewed countries with the highest GDP and also the highest national debt.

    As of September 3rd, the United States has the highest GDP $19.54 trillion followed by China at $14.57 trillion. Japan’s GDP almost five times less compared to the US at $4.53 trillion.

    Under national debt, the United States is on top with $26.71 trillion. The debt is almost double compared to second-placed Japan with a debt of $12.15 trillion.  China has the third highest national debt globally at $7.32 trillion.

    The US national debt continues to spiral to historical levels threatening the economy. According to the research report:

    The U.S. is among countries that pumped more money into the economy to mitigate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

  • Euro area unemployment registered a slight increase and sits at 7.9%

    Euro area unemployment registered a slight increase and sits at 7.9%

    In July 2020 the euro area seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate was 7.9%, up from 7.7% in June 2020.

    The EU unemployment rate was 7.2% in July 2020, up from 7.1% in June 2020, shows Eurostat.

    Eurostat estimates that 15.184 million men and women in the EU, of whom 12.793 million in the euro area, were unemployed in July 2020.

    Compared with June 2020, the number of persons unemployed increased by 336.000 in the EU and by 344.000 in the euro area.

    The unemployment rate for women was 7.5% in the EU, up from 7.3% in June 2020. The unemployment rate for men was 7.0% in July 2020, up from 6.8% in June 2020.

    In the euro area, the unemployment rate for women increased from 8.0% in June 2020 to 8.3% in July 2020 while it increased from 7.5% to 7.6% for men.

  • EU electricity consumption down by 10.5% in May 2020

    EU electricity consumption down by 10.5% in May 2020

    Eurostat May data show lower electricity consumption in most Member States. The total EU electricity consumption in May 2020 was 10.5% lower than the lowest May value recorded between 2016 and 2019.

    Electricity consumption in May 2020 showed very low levels in a number of countries, in particular in Spain and Poland (both -13.7% compared with May 2019), Slovenia (-13.4%), Croatia (-11.9%), Romania (-11.8%) and Portugal (-11.6%).

    A further nine Member States showed reductions of 5% to 10%, while for six Member States the drop was between 1% and 5%.

    In two Member States (Bulgaria and Latvia) the situation was stable (+/- 1%), while in the remaining four Member States electricity consumption grew.