Average Romanian monthly income per household in the third quarter of last year was RON 2,457 or around EUR 540. The average income per person was RON 856 (less than EUR 190), according to the Romanian Statistics Institute's (INS) family budget survey of household income and expenditure in Q3 2012.

Meanwhile average household expenditure was RON 2,214 per month, just under EUR 490 or slightly over 90 percent of the value for income. Average consumption expenditure was 72.1 percent of the total spend.

The INS also provided breakdowns of exactly where family incomes are coming from in the report published on January 8. According to the INS, money income accounted on average for 84.7 percent of the total, with remainder made up of what the statistics institute term “in-kind” income, in most cases agricultural products.

Looking further, a little over 50 percent of household incomes came from salaries and some 23 percent from social provisions. This, added to the previously mentioned 15.3 percent in-kind income, accounted for the majority of income. However, 4.2 percent of income on average came from agriculture, which, given that the figures are national averages, gives some idea of just how important agriculture is for many Romanians.

On expenditure, the biggest chunk apart from the 72.1 going on consumption was the 16.5 percent accounted for by tax. Production expenditure reached 6.9 percent of the total while average investments were only 1 percent of the monthly outgoings.

Within consumption expenditure, Romanian spent the biggest chunk (42 percent) on food and non-alcoholic drinks. The next largest portion was for the home, including accommodation and monthly utility bills, making up 15 percent of the total. Alcohol and tobacco, furnishings, health, transport, communications and recreation & culture each accounted for between 4 and 7 percent of total consumption spending.

editor@romania-insider.com