The latest figures from the EU published yesterday put the Prague region and the Bratislava region among the richest areas in the EU, even though in general there are still large east-west differences.
The GDP per capita in Prague is around EUR 43,200 in terms of purchasing power, while in Bratislava it works out as EUR 41,800.
What is surprising, is that both Bratislava and Prague are officially wealthier than anywhere in Austria, Greece, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Portugal or Spain, for instance.
Bratislava has made most headway in this respect, because just six years ago it did not make it into the top 15 in the EU. Even so, the 15 poorest regions in the EU can all be found in post-communist countries, with Bulgaria and Romania holding the bottom end of the ranking, chasing Hungary and Poland above them.
For the sake of comparison, the poorest region in the world according to the World Bank is Burundi, which has a GDP per capita of a mere EUR 121, while the monarchy of Monaco posts a figure in excess of EUR 150,000.
Oh ! A nickel ! You see this ? I quit. I open my own hotel ! : )
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbcH_qYkeTc
Richer than Austria etc?? That makes no sense at all. In what respect and by what possible method of accounting is bratislava or prague ‘richer’ than say Vienna or Milano? if so then were the heck the money go man? bratislava is one of the most beat up capitals in europe- more like the capital of ‘gloom and doom’. so just because a tiny minority of super wealthy up the GDP of the relatively small populations, that doesn’t carry over to cities or regions being rich. on the contrary & actually and proves what condition the real local economy is in.
Mark, not sure of the exact calculation method, but that is what the statistics say. This is caused by the ‘per capita’ aspect of the actual region, with Bratislava region being pretty small overall compared with the actual level of wealth contained there. Personally, I don’t agree that Bratislava is a ‘beaten up’ capital, as it is one of the fastest developing cities in Europe.
It makes total sense. The date are calculated by GNP armonized to local purchase power. It mean that the Gross Product per head is ricalculated on the base of the relative cost of product for the general pubblic.
Is like if, in terms to discover your real salary, the gross figure will be also proportioned to the level of price of the shops of the region were you live.
It mean that with a medium salary and a lower cost of life a slovak from Bratislava is richer than a better payed austriac living in Vienna and spending more than the first guy for several of his living expences.
Hope now is clear.
thanks for the explanation tony. i guess one should look at this conclusion for what it is. maybe rounding it out with other quantitative and qualitative aspects other than the Big Mac Index (purchasing power) that includes, health, social, community, quality of life factors, services etc. before concluding bratislava is among the richest of all regions within the EU. if those were included bratislava would be the same grim train station it has always been.