RSS
Social Monitor report: Romania trailing other EU states by average financial wealth
A Romanian's average financial wealth is 9,965 US dollars, significantly lower than that of the citizens of other EU member states, shows an infographic report of the Social Monitor, a project of the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Romania.
"According to Credit Suisse data, the average wealth of a Romanian adult is 43,074 US dollars, but this means the sum of the financial wealth - that is, the money held in bank or cash accounts - and the non-financial wealth represented by property, such as a home or apartment. As the vast majority of the country's population are homeowners, their financial wealth is actually low, at 9,965 US dollars. This is less than the figure recorded in other European countries, Eastern European ones included. Compared to other EU states, a Romanian's financial wealth is significantly lower," note the infographic authors.
At 18,574 US dollars, Poland's average financial wealth is double compared to Romania, in the Czech Republic it is 34,555 US dollars, and in Germany - 104,221 US dollars.
"The use of the arithmetic mean, however, can provide an inaccurate picture of the situation - especially when reporting about a polarized society, where a few people are very wealthy and the rest are poor. The median is much more useful in this context, specifically the value separating the lower half (less wealthy) of the population and the upper (wealthier) half of the population. In Romania's case, the median is 19,582 US dollars, meaning that half of the Romanians who live in the country have a wealth (bank accounts + value of property or real estate) below 19,582 US dollars, and half own more. From this point of view, the median wealth of a Romanian is not significantly lower than that in the neighboring countries: in the Czech Republic the median wealth is 20,854 US dollars, and in Poland it's 22,600 US dollars," the cited source said.