GfK purchasing power: a huge gap between Europe's north-west and south-eastern part

Purchasing power in Europe climbed by around four percent this year. But purchasing power levels vary substantially across the continent and within the 42 individual countries considered by GfK’s study. Geographic location is therefore a major determinant in Europeans’ spending power.

According to the GfK study, a total of approximately 9.13 trillion euros is available to European consumers in 2015 for spending and saving. This corresponds to an average per-capita purchasing power of 13,636 euros for the 42 countries under review. Hungary in 31st on the list with an average purchasing power of 5239 euros per year.

Compared to last year, Europeans have around 4.2 percent more per-capita purchasing power, which translates to a real-value increase in many countries. According to the European Central Bank, Europe’s 2015 rate of inflation will be 0.2 percent.