Household real consumption per capita increases in both euro area and EU

Announcement

Following recommendations for a harmonised European revision policy for national accounts and balance of payments, EU countries have carried out a benchmark revision of their national accounts estimates in 2024. The purpose of this benchmark revision is to implement changes introduced by the amended ESA 2010 regulation, and to incorporate new data sources and other methodological improvements. Most of the revised quarterly and annual country data have been released by Eurostat between June and October 2024, and progressively integrated in European estimates. The impact of these revisions has been limited, but still noticeable for some European aggregates and more pronounced for certain Member States. For further details, please consult the available documentation on Eurostat’s website.

Notes for users

Revisions and timetable

A first release, focusing on data for household saving and investment rates in the euro area, is published around 94 days after each quarter. Compared with News Release of 4 October 2024 on the euro area aggregate, the seasonally adjusted household saving rate of the second quarter of 2024 was revised downwards from 15.7% to 15.6%. The investment rate remained unrevised at 9.2%.

The European estimates published today include benchmark revisions from Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Finland and Sweden. Moreover, the seasonal adjustment models of the European aggregates have been revised thoroughly along the full timeseries to include the impact of the benchmark revisions.

Compared with News Release of 26 July 2024, the growth rate of household adjusted gross income per capita in real terms for the first quarter of 2024 was revised downward from 1.5% to 1.1% for the euro area and from 1.6% to 1.0% for the EU. The real growth rate of actual household consumption was revised upward from 0.2% to 0.4% for the euro area and from 0.2% to 0.3% for the EU.

Methods and definitions

Household real income per capita is defined as the adjusted gross disposable income of households, in nominal terms, divided by the total population (source: National Accounts concept) and by the deflator (price index) of household final consumption expenditure.

Household real consumption per capita is defined as the actual final consumption expenditure of households, in nominal terms, divided by the total population (source: National Accounts concept) and by the deflator (price index) of household final consumption expenditure.

The compilation of the European sector accounts follows the European System of Accounts 2010 (ESA2010) and covers the period from the first quarter of 1999 onwards. The data come from a detailed set of seasonally adjusted quarterly European sector accounts released by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union and the European Central Bank (ECB).

Institutional sectors bring together economic units with broadly similar characteristics and behaviour, namely: households (including non-profit institutions serving households), non-financial corporations, financial corporations, government and the rest of the world. In the latter, to measure the external transactions of the euro area / European Union, it is necessary to remove cross-border flows within the area concerned.

Eurostat’s database includes detailed annual and quarterly sector accounts of Member States of the European Economic Area and derived key indicators published around 120 days after each quarter (which also cover annual indicators such as debt-to-income ratios). A subset of quarterly key indicators is published around 94 days after each quarter.

Due to the conversion to euro, the growth rates of European Union aggregates may be affected by movements in exchange rates.

Geographical information

The euro area (EA20) consists of 20 Member States: Belgium, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia and Finland, plus the European Central Bank, the European Stability Mechanism and the European Financial Stability Facility.

The European Union (EU27) includes Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Finland and Sweden plus the EU institutions.