Press Release 31/07/2020

FAMILY EXPENDITURE SURVEY. 2019

Average expenditure per household in the Basque Country continued to rise in 2019, standing at pre-crisis levels

Total household consumption expenditure in the Basque Country reached 31,371 million euros in 2019, up 1.3% on 2018

Average household expenditure was 34,423 euros in 2019, 0.6% more than the previous year, maintaining the upward trend that began in 2015, according to Eustat data. It practically attained the level of expenditure prior to the economic crisis, slightly below the 34,672 euros spent by households in 2008, all of which is in current terms.

Analysing the evolution of average household expenditure across the whole 2006-2019 series, reveals that the Basque Country remained above the Spanish average throughout this period, being 13.8% higher in 2019.

Average expenditure per person in the Basque Country rose to 14,524 euros in 2019 and registered a year-on-year increase of 0.8%, standing at levels above the Spanish average, specifically by 19.5%. As regards the evolution of the average expenditure per person, the Basque Country showed annual growth since 2015, with average expenditure per person up 7.0% on that of 2008.

By expenditure group, Basque homes maintained the same average household spending in 2019 on Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels, the largest category, increasing by 2.1% in respect of the previous year. In second place in terms of category size, expenditure on Food and non-alcoholic beverages, maintained the same level, with a slight increase of 0.3%, with respect to 2018. In contrast, the average household expenditures that decreased in respect of the previous year were Furniture, household articles and articles for day-to-day household maintenance (-10.0%), Clothing and footwear (-5.0%), Healthcare(-2.7%), Other goods and services (-2.4%) and Alcoholic beverages and tobacco (-1.9%).

If we focus on the structure of expenditure, in 2019 there were still the same four main expenditure groups in the consumption structure of Basque households, capturing 69.3% of the total expenditure between them. Of particular note are Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels; accounting for 34.0% of total household budgets; followed by Food and non-alcoholic beverages, with 13.7%, expenditure on Restaurants and hotels, with 10.9% and Transport (10.7%). Following these were Other goods and services (7.3%) and Leisure and culture (5.1%). In relation to 2018, there were no significant changes regarding the structure of expenditure and it was expenditure on Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels that increased the most in the budget of Basque households, going from 33.5% to 34.0%. Expenditure on Furniture, household articles and articles for day-to-day household maintenance, in turn, decreased by half a percentage point, going from 4.8% of household expenditure in 2018 to 4.3% in 2019.

If we compare the structure of expenditure in the Basque Country with that of Spain, it can be observed that in 2019 Basque households dedicated 2.8 percentage points more of the household budget to Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels, as well as 1.2 more percentage points on Restaurants and Hotels. In contrast, they dedicated 2.2 percentage points less to Transport than Spanish households.

In absolute terms, total expenditure on consumption in 2019 reached 31,371 million euros, 1.3% more than in 2018, with different trends in the various expenditure groups. Looking at the two most significant groups in terms of volume of expenditure, Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels increased by 2.8%; and Food and non-alcoholic beverages registered a growth of 1.0%. Expenditure on Transport increased by 4.8% and expenditure on Restaurants and hotels was up 4.0%, whereas expenditure on Other goods and services fell by 1.8%. There was a significant rise in expenditure on Education, with an increase of 10.4% in respect of 2018. Also of note was the decrease in expenditure on Furniture, household articles and articles for day-to-day household maintenance (-9.4%) and Clothing and footwear (-4.3%).

If we look at the average household expenditure according to the level of net monthly household income in 2019, an increase in average expenditure can be observed for households with a monthly income between 1,000 and 1,999 euros whereas for households with income above this threshold there is a reduction in the level of expenditure. More specifically, in households with a monthly income of between 1,000 and 1,999 euros, average expenditure increased by 3.8%, rising to 26,103 euros. In contrast, households with a monthly income of 3,000 euros or more had an average annual expenditure of 49,876 euros, 0.3% less than in 2018. For households with a monthly income below 1,000 euros there was an average annual expenditure per household of 16,715 euros, 3.5% down on the previous year. Finally, households with a monthly income of between 2,000 and 2,999 euros also saw average expenditure drop by 1.2% to stand at 34,655 euros.

In terms of expenditure according to the geographical location of the household, the largest average household expenditure was produced in municipalities of fewer than 10,000 inhabitants, with an expenditure of 37,152 euros per household, 7.9% above the average for the Autonomous Region. The lowest average expenditure per household (€33,676) was produced in households situated in municipalities of between 10,000 and 100,000 inhabitants. In municipalities with more than 100,000 inhabitants, average expenditure increased by 2.2% in respect of 2018 to stand at 33,915 euros.

By province, families in Álava accounted for 13.7% of the total expenditure on consumption in the Basque Country in 2019, Bizkaia accounted for 52.8% of the total and Gipuzkoa 33.5%. Households in Gipuzkoa registered the highest average expenditure, reaching an average expenditure per household of 35,679 euros, 1,255 euros above the Basque country average (34,423 euros). In Bizkaia, the average expenditure per household stood a little above the average, at 34,608 euros, whereas in Álava it was 31,103 euros.

Note: The survey on family expenditure is carried out in collaboration with the Spanish National Statistics Institute (INE) in the Autonomous Region of the Basque Country.

For further information:

Euskal Estatistika-Erakundea / Basque Statistics Institute C/ Donostia-San Sebastian, 1 01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz Press Service:servicioprensa@eustat.esTel: 945 01 75 62