Customer shopping at a grocery store in Helsinki. LEHTIKUVA
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In 2022, Finnish households allocated 59% of their average annual expenditure of €39,000 to essentials, a recent preliminary report by Statistics Finland reveals. This significant portion of spending underscores the financial pressures faced by Finnish families in managing their day-to-day needs.
Families with two parents emerged as the highest spenders, averaging €62,600 per year, while childless couples followed closely, spending around €50,600.
When evaluated per consumption unit, childless couples had the highest expenditure among all household types.
Conversely, single-person households recorded the lowest spending both in absolute terms and per consumption unit. The primary expenditure categories for Finnish households were housing and energy, transportation, and food and non-alcoholic beverages.
Tuomas Parikka, Senior Statistician at Statistics Finland, highlights the dominance of these necessities in household budgets. He notes that households with individuals over 64 and single-parent families allocate a larger share of their budget to essentials compared to childless couples under 65 and families with two parents.
Housing costs consumed about one-third of total household spending, with the highest proportion seen in households with members over 64. “The share of housing expenses has been rising since the 1960s. On average, housing costs now reach about €12,600 annually, equating to over €1,000 per month. For two-parent families, this figure escalates to nearly €17,000 per year per household,” Parikka explains.
Transportation expenses accounted for an average of 13.5% of all household expenditure. These costs were significantly higher for childless couples under 65 and lower for households with members aged 65 and above. The inclusion of travel expenses in transportation is believed to contribute to these variations.
Food and non-alcoholic beverages represented 12.9% of total household consumption, with an average annual spend of €5,000 on these items. Families with two parents and childless couples had the highest per consumption unit expenditure in this category, while single-person households spent the least, both in absolute terms and per consumption unit.
These preliminary findings, focusing on main categories, will be followed by a more detailed report in April 2024, breaking down the data into various subcategories. The household consumption statistics derived from this survey are the only
Source: www.helsinkitimes.fi
