[01] Greek prices close to EU average in 2008

The study explored the spread in consumer prices across 37 European countries in 2008, which were then compared with the average 2008 price levels for 'Household Final Consumption Expenditure' in the 27 EU member-states (given a value of 100 percent).

Among the countries included in the report, apart from the 27 EU member-states, were the EU candidate-countries (Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Croatia and Turkey), three EFTA countries (Iceland, Norway and Switzerland) and four western Balkan countries (Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro and Serbia).

The report noted a wide spread in consumer prices across Europe, which ranged from 53 percent lower that the average in FYROM to 41 percent higher in Denmark.

Broken down by individual sector, prices in Greece were higher than the EU average in clothing (113 percent) and footwear (118 percent), electronic goods (112 percent), telecommunications services (111 percent), furniture (106 percent) and household appliances (106 percent). They were closer to the EU average for foods and non-alcoholic beverages (101 percent) and below the EU average for electricity and heating (73 percent), transport (76 percent), alcoholic beverages and cigarettes (89 percent), cars (93 percent) and hotels (96 percent).

The closest to the EU average in prices was the United Kingdom (99 percent), Spain (96 percent), the Netherlands (103 percent) and Germany (104 percent). Italy and Austria were both at 105 percent of the average while Cyprus was at 90 percent.

The EU countries with the highest consumer prices were Denmark (141 percent), Ireland (127 percent) and Finland (125 percent), while those with the lowest were Bulgaria (51 percent), Romania (62 percent), Lithuania (67 percent) and Poland (69 percent).

On the non-EU countries, prices were lowest in FYROM at 47 percent of the EU average, followed by Albania (53 percent), Bosnia-Herzegovina (56 percent), Serbia (58 percent), Montenegro (62 percent), Turkey (73 percent), Croatia (75 percent), Iceland (117 percent), Switzerland (130 percent) and Norway (139 percent).

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