Rich or Poor?

Prague and Bratislava among richest regions in the EU

BRATISLAVA, SLOVAKIA – According to new Eurostat data, Prague and Bratislava ranked among the richest regions in the EU in terms of regional GDP per capita expressed in purchasing power standards (PPS).

Prague and Bratislava in top 10 richest regions in the EU

After Luxembourg, whose regional GDP per capita represented 263% of the EU average, the leading EU regions were Ireland’s Southern (225%) and Eastern & Midland (210%) regions, followed by Brussels in Belgium (203%) and Hamburg in Germany (197%).

With a regional GDP per capita in PPS accounting for 192% of the EU average (+5 percentage points higher year-on-year), Prague ranks as the 6th richest region in the EU, moving up one spot compared to last year (primarily due to the U.K.’s exit). With a GDP per capita of 27,500 in PPS however, the Czech Republic as a whole remains slightly below (91%) the EU average of 30,200.

Bratislava comes right after at the 7th position EU-wide with a regional wealth per capita representing 173% of the EU average in purchasing power standards (a drop of 6 percentage points year-on-year).

Czech Republic and Slovakia remain below average nation-wide

Taking into account all the regions, Slovakia (74% of the EU average in PPS), Poland (71%) and Hungary (71%) all remain well below average – albeit appear, on the long-term, to be slowly catching up with Western European standards in terms of GDP per capita.

According to the EU’s statistical office, the richest countries in Europe were Luxembourg (GDP per capita representing 263% of the EU average), Ireland  (191%), the Netherlands (130%), Denmark (129%), Austria (128%), Germany (123%) and Sweden (121%).

The poorest countries, on the other hand, were Bulgaria (51% of the EU average), Croatia (63%), Romania (66%), Greece (69%) and Latvia (69%).

Note: The purchasing power standard (PPS) is an artificial currency unit harmonizing price level differences between national economies.