Economy of the European Union

EU Member States GDP growth rates

Member State	% GDP Growth
	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2005 - 2011
Austria	2.4	3.7	3.7	1.4	−3.8	2.1	2.7	0.7	13,2
Belgium	1.7	2.7	2.9	1.0	−2.8	2.4	1.8	-0.2	9,9
Bulgaria	6.4	6.5	6.4	6.2	−5.5	0.4	1.7	0.8	23,6
Cyprus	3.9	4.1	5.1	3.6	−1.9	1.1	0.5	-2.3	17,4
Czech Republic	6.8	7.0	5.7	3.1	−4.5	2.5	1.9	-1.1	24,0
Denmark	2.4	3.4	1.6	−0.8	−5.7	1.6	1.1	-0.4	2,6
Estonia	8.9	10.1	7.5	-4.2	−14.1	3.3	8.3	3.2	17,1
Finland	2.9	4.4	5.3	0.3	-8.5	3.3	2.8	-0.2	10,9
France	1.9	2.7	2.3	-0.1	−3.1	1.7	1.7	0.0	8,1
Germany	0.7	3.7	3.3	1.1	−5.1	4.2	3.0	0.7	10,9
Greece	2.3	5.5	3.5	-0.2	-3.1	-4.9	-7.1	-6.4	-3.4
Hungary	4.0	3.9	0.1	0.9	−6.8	1.3	1.6	-1.7	4,7
Ireland	5.9	5.4	5.4	-2.1	−5.5	-0.8	1.4	0.7	5,5
Italy	0.9	2.2	1.7	−1.2	−5.5	1.8	0.4	-2.2	0,0
Latvia	10.1	11.2	9.6	−3.3	-17.7	−0.9	5.5	5.3	12,3
Lithuania	7.8	7.8	9.8	2.9	−14.8	1.5	5.9	3.6	20,1
Luxembourg	5.3	4.9	6.6	-0.7	−4.1	2.9	1.7	0.2	17,5
Malta	3.6	2.6	4.1	3.7	−2.4	2.7	1.6	1.0	18,1
Netherlands	2.0	3.4	3.9	1.8	−3.7	1.6	1.0	-0.9	10,8
Poland	3.6	6.2	6.8	5.1	1.6	3.9	4.3	2.0	36,0
Portugal	0.8	1.4	2.4	0.0	−2.9	1.9	-1.6	-3.2	1,4
Romania	4.2	7.9	6.3	7.3	−6.6	-1.1	2.2	0.2	20,8
Spain	3.6	4.1	3.5	0.9	−3.7	−0.3	0.4	-1.4	8,6
Slovakia	6.7	8.3	10.5	5.8	−4.9	4.4	3.2	2.0	38,3
Slovenia	4.0	5.8	7.0	3.4	−7.8	1.2	0.6	-2.3	13,5
Sweden	3.2	4.3	3.3	−0.6	−5.0	6.6	3.7	1.0	15,9
United Kingdom	2.8	2.6	3.6	−1.0	−4.0	1.8	0.9	0.2	5,4
European Union	2.1	3.3	3.2	0.3	−4.3	2.1	1.5	-0.3	8,2
Eurozone	1.7	3.2	3.0	0.4	−4.4	2.0	1.4	-0.6	7,5

Trade

The European Union is the largest exporter in the world and as of 2008 the largest importer of goods and services. Internal trade between the member states is aided by the removal of barriers to trade such as tariffs and border controls. In the eurozone, trade is helped by not having any currency differences to deal with amongst most members.

The European Union Association Agreement does something similar for a much larger range of countries, partly as a so-called soft approach ('a carrot instead of a stick') to influence the politics in those countries. The European Union represents all its members at the World Trade Organization (WTO), and acts on behalf of member states in any disputes. When the EU negotiates trade related agreement outside the WTO framework, the subsequent agreement must be approved by each individual EU member.

Main trading partners(2011)

Rank Partners Imports (Millions Euro) % (of total) Exports (Millions Euro) % (of total) Total trade (Millions Euro) % (of total) - Total EU 1.685.398 100% 1.531.358 100% 3.216.756 100% 1  United States 184.245,6 10,9% 260,553.4 17.0% 444.799,0 13,8% 2  China 292.129,6 17,3% 136.222,3 8,9% 428.351,9 13,3% 3  Russia 198.342,6 11,8% 108.434,0 7,1% 306.776,6 9,5% 4  Switzerland 91,205.4 5.4% 121,671.5 7.9% 212,876.9 6.6% 5  Norway 93,449.8 5.5% 46,529.0 3.0% 139,978.8 4.4% 6  Turkey 47,592.7 2,8% 72,670.9 4.7% 120,263.6 3.7% 7  Japan 67,451.7 4.0% 48,967.5 3,2% 116,419.2 3.6% 8  India 39,314.7 2.3% 40,425.1 2,6% 79,739.8 2.5% 9  Brazil 37,776.0 2,2% 35,728.6 2,3% 73,504.6 2,3% 10  South Korea 36,100.7 2,1% 32,417.2 2,1% 68,517.8 2,1% 11  Saudi Arabia 28,122.6 1.7% 26,395.1 1,7% 54,517.7 1,7% 12  Canada 22,862.3 1,4% 29,609.1 1,9% 52,471.4 1,6% 13  Singapore 18,941.5 1,1% 27,131.3 1,8% 46,072.8 1,4% 14  Algeria 27,678.4 1,6% 17,205.4 1,1% 44,883.8 1,4% 15  South Africa 17,785.0 1,1% 25,634.2 1,7% 43,419.1 1,3% 16  Australia 11,761.9 0,7% 30,805.7 2,0% 42,567.6 1,3% 17  United Arab Emirates 8,775.7 0,5% 32,614.8 2,1% 41,390.5 1,3% 18  Hong Kong 10,133.5 0,6% 30,188.0 2,0% 40,321.5 1,3% 19  Taiwan 23,946.8 1,4% 16,213.4 1,1% 40,160.3 1,2% 20  Mexico 16,270.4 1,0% 23,802.4 1,6% 40,072.8 1,2% 21  Nigeria 24,147.4 1,4% 12,471.9 0,8% 36,619.3 1,1% 22  Ukraine 14,987.5 0,9% 21,196.4 1,4% 36,183.9 1,1% 23  Malaysia 21,004.0 1,2% 11,914.9 0,8% 32,918.9 1,0% 24  Israel 12,645.0 0,8% 16,835.6 1,1% 29,480.7 0,9% 25  Thailand 17,534.6 1,0% 11,858.4 0,8% 29,393.0 0,9% 26  Kazakhstan 22,725.2 1,3% 5,999.5 0,4% 28,724.7 0,9% 27  Iran 16,340.8 1,0% 10,488.4 0,7% 26,829.3 0,8% 28  Morocco 8,688.8 0,5% 15,167.7 1,0% 23,856.4 0,7% 29  Indonesia 16,149.5 1,0% 7,349.8 0,5% 23,499.4 0,7% 30  Egypt 9,510.7 0,6% 13,943.7 0,9% 23,454.4 0,7% 31  Tunisia 9,874.1 0,6% 10,930.9 0,7% 20,804.9 0,6% 32  Argentina 10,656.7 0,6% 8,320.0 0,5% 18,976.8 0,6% 33  Chile 10,869.7 0,6% 7,651.3 0,5% 18,521.0 0,6% 34  Qatar 13,321.4 0,8% 4,885.4 0,3% 18,206.8 0,6% 35  Vietnam 12,801.4 0,8% 5,209.3 0,3% 18,010.7 0,6% 36  Azerbaijan 14,841.9 0,9% 2,862.4 0,2% 17,704.3 0,6% 37  Croatia 5,604.2 0,3% 11,300.7 0,7% 16,904.9 0,5% 38  Iraq 9,469.6 0,6% 3,883.5 0,3% 13,353.1 0,4% 39  Serbia 4,716.0 0,3% 8,486.1 0,6% 13,202.1 0,4% 40  Libya 10,437.1 0,6% 2,066.1 0,1% 12,503.2 0,4% 41  Colombia 6,897.8 0,4% 4,986.1 0,3% 11,883.9 0,4% 42  Angola 6,651.3 0,4% 4,853.4 0,3% 11,504.7 0,4% 43  Belarus 4,220.2 0,3% 7,218.3 0,5% 11,438.5 0,4% 44  Bangladesh 8,585.4 0,5% 1,701.7 0,1% 10,287.1 0,3% 45  Peru 6,342.2 0,4% 2,808.6 0,2% 9,150.7 0,3% 46  Philippines 5,111.4 0,3% 3,978.8 0,3% 9,090.2 0,3% 47  Venezuela 4,086.4 0,2% 4,886.1 0,3% 8,972.5 0,3% 48  Kuwait 4,797.2 0,3% 3,706.7 0,2% 8,503.9 0,3% 49  Pakistan 4,569.3 0,3% 3,740.6 0,2% 8,310.0 0,3% 50  Gibraltar 217.5 0,0% 7,889.9 0,5% 8,107.4 0,3%

Trade with partner country groupings(2011)

Rank Partner region Imports (Millions Euro) % (of total) Exports (Millions Euro) % (of total) Total trade (Millions Euro) % (of total) - Total EU 1,683,931.0 100% 1,531,122.0 100% 3,215,053.0 100% - ACP 86,277.8 5,1% 80,197.0 5,2% 166,474.8 5,2% - Andean Community 15,906.9 0,9% 9,652.0 0,6% 25,558.9 0,8% - ASEAN 93,203.4 5,5% 68,458.5 4,5% 161,661.9 5,0% - BRIC 567,257.6 33,7% 320,814.8 21,0% 888,072.4 27,6% - CACM 8,274.5 0,5% 4,335.2 0,3% 12,609.7 0,4% - EU Candidate Countries 55,324.2 3,3% 86,723.0 5,7% 142,047.2 4,4% - CIS 257,570.0 15,3% 152,602.0 10,0% 410,172.0 12,8% - EFTA 188,650.8 11,2% 171,141.9 11,2% 359,792.7 11,2% - Latin America Countries 106,354.4 6,3% 96,141.4 6,3% 202,495.9 6,3% - MEDA(Excl. EU and Turkey) 71,958.9 4,3% 85,634.8 5,6% 157,593.7 4,9% - Mercosur 50,950.8 3,0% 45,820.2 3,0% 96,771.0 3,0% - NAFTA 223,262.7 13,3% 313,976.6 20,5% 537,239.3 16,7%

Main trading partners 2007-2010

Main trade partners	2007			2008			2009			2010
	Exports(Millions Euro)	Imports(Millions Euro)	Total Trade(Millions Euro)	Exports	Imports	Total Trade	Exports	Imports	Total Trade	Exports	Imports	Total Trade
Total EU	1,240,556	1,435,0154	2,675,571	1,309,885	1,566,309	2,876,194	1,097,142	1,206,495	2,303,637	1,347,948	1,506,934	2,854,882
United States	259,178	174,114	433,292	250,124	186,777	436,901	205,538	159,212	364,750	242,173	170,111	412,284
China	71,785	232,624	304,409	78,417	247,933	326,350	82,426	214,092	296,518	113,251	282,508	395,759
Russia	89,067	144,980	234,047	105,028	178,144	283,172	65,614	117,741	183,355	86,133	158,553	244,686
Switzerland	92,610	76,641	169,251	98,006	80,330	178,366	88,558	73,842	162,400	105,375	84,307	189,682
Norway	43,457	76,578	120,035	43,767	95,931	139,388	37,528	68,895	106,423	41,881	79,229	121,110
Japan	43,622	78,392	122,014	42,267	75,074	117,341	36,037	56,738	92,775	43,852	65,766	109,618
Turkey	52,643	47,028	99,671	54,136	46,020	100,156	44,123	36,163	80,286	61,219	42,307	103,526
India	26,586	29,177	55,763	31,603	29,545	61,148	27,593	25,448	53,041	34,804	33,193	67,997
South Korea	24,708	41,338	66,046	25,568	39,572	65,140	21,637	32,298	53,935	27,944	39,079	67,023
Brazil	21,256	32,511	54,022	26,349	35,896	62,245	21,629	25,723	47,352	31,314	32,431	63,745
Canada	25,262	22,318	47,944	26,092	23,868	49,960	22,460	17,768	40,228	26,612	20,186	46,798
Singapore	20,456	18,393	38,939	22,059	16,166	38,225	20,430	14,633	35,063	24,370	18,707	43,077
South Africa	20,374	20,870	41,244	20,222	22,362	42,584	16,121	14,985	31,106	21,433	17,937	39,370
Saudi Arabia	19,898	18,609	38,507	21,293	22,042	43,335	11,678	19,565	31,243	23,129	16,180	39,309
Taiwan	13,319	26,031	39,350	11,596	24,076	35,672	10,030	17,855	27,885	14,772	24,156	38,928
Hong Kong	20,846	10,973	31,819	21,106	11,503	32,609	19,664	9,535	29,199	26,940	10,674	37,614
Australia	22,567	11,749	34,316	25,178	11,195	36,373	21,858	8,091	29,949	26,770	9,791	36,561
Algeria	11,244	20,584	31,828	15,363	28,259	43,622	14,777	17,411	32,188	15,534	20,916	36,450
Libya	4,155	27,404	31,559	5,751	35,265	41,013	6,313	20,882	27,195	6,709	28,806	35,515
Mexico	20,956	12,110	33,066	21,934	13,721	36,655	16,002	10,040	26,042	21,338	13,157	34,495

Unemployment

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in the European Union (EU27) in March 2009 was 8.3% compared to 6.7% in March 2008. The Eurozone (EA16) unemployment figure for January 2009 was 8.2% compared to 7.3% in January 2008. The unemployment rate (EU25) had previously declined in prior years from 8.9% in March 2005 to 8.4% in March 2006 to 7.3% in March 2007.

The rate varies widely by member state. There has been a steep upturn in the unemployment rate since 2008 due to the worldwide credit crunch and following recession. The countries within the EU which were most affected were Spain, Ireland and the Baltic countries with the unemployment rate doubling or in case of the Baltic countries nearly tripling. By comparison in March 2009 the United States had an unemployment rate of 8.6% (2008: 5.1; 2007: 4.4; 2006: 4.7) which was higher than the EU-27's unemployment rate but lower than the EU-16 Eurozone rate of 8.9%. Japan's unemployment rate remained comparatively steady at 4.4% (2008: 3.9; 2007: 4.0; 2006: 4.1). The following tables show the current unemployment rate of all Member States for March 2009 with comparisons to March 2008, 2007, 2006 and 2005 and comparisons to the United States and Japan:

Unemployment	2005-03	2006-03	2007-03	2008-03	2009-03	2010-03	2011-03	2012-03
Austria	5.1	5.1	4.5	4.1	4.5	4.9	4.4	4.2
Belgium	8.4	8.2	7.7	6.9	7.3	8.1	7.7	7.2
Denmark	5.4	4.3	4.1	3.0	5.7	7.6	7.5	7.7
Finland	8.5	7.9	7.0	6.3	7.4	9.0	8.0	7.6
France	9.7	9.1	8.6	7.6	8.8	10.1	9.5	10.1
Germany	9.8	8.7	8.6	7.4	7.6	7.3	6.2	5.6
Greece	9.9	9.6	8.6	7.8	7.8	10.2	13.8	22.1
Ireland	4.5	4.2	4.6	5.6	10.6	13.2	14.7	14.8
Italy	7.8	7.7	6.1	6.6	6.9	8.8	8.3	10.3
Luxembourg	4.3	4.8	4.9	4.4	6.1	5.6	4.3	5.0
Netherlands	4.9	4.0	3.4	2.8	2.8	4.1	4.2	5.0
Portugal	7.4	7.6	8.2	7.6	8.5	10.5	12.6	15.1
Spain	9.9	8.7	8.1	9.5	17.4	19.1	20.7	24.1
Sweden	6.3	7.2	6.6	5.8	8.0	8.7	7.7	7.3
United Kingdom	4.6	5.0	5.5	5.2	6.6	7.9	7.7	8.1
Bulgaria			7.5	6.1	5.9	8.7	11.4	12.1
Cyprus	5.1	5.2	4.1	3.7	4.9	6.7	7.3	10.7
Czech Republic	8.0	7.7	5.6	4.4	5.5	7.9	6.9	6.8
Estonia	8.8	5.3	4.9	4.0	11.1	15.5	14.3	10.6
Hungary	6.8	7.4	7.3	7.6	9.2	11.0	11.8	11.1
Latvia	9.1	7.6	6.4	6.1	16.1	22.3	16.2	15.4
Lithuania	9.2	6.4	4.6	4.3	15.1	15.8	16.3	13.6
Malta	7.2	8.1	6.6	5.8	6.7	6.9	6.3	6.1
Poland	18.0	16.8	10.3	7.4	7.7	9.1	9.3	9.9
Romania			6.6	6.2	5.8	7.6	7.0	7.2
Slovakia	16.7	15.7	11.3	9.9	10.5	14.1	14.0	13.7
Slovenia	6.4	6.2	5.2	4.5	5.0	6.2	8.1	8.1
European Union	8.9	8.4	7.3	6.7	8.3	9.6	9.5	10.3
United States	5.1	4.7	4.4	5.1	8.5	9.7	8.8	8.2
Japan	4.5	4.1	4.0	3.9	4.4	4.8	4.6	4.5

Industries

The services sector is by far the most important sector in the European Union, making up 69.4% of GDP, compared to the manufacturing industry with 28.4% of GDP and agriculture with only 2.3% of GDP.

Agriculture

The agricultural sector is supported by subsidies from the European Union in the form of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). This currently represents 40–50% of the EU's total spending. It guarantees a minimum price for farmers in the EU. This is criticised as a form of protectionism, inhibiting trade, and damaging developing countries; one of the most vocal opponents is the UK, the third largest economy within the bloc, which has repeatedly refused to give up the annual UK rebate unless the CAP undergoes significant reform; France, the biggest benefactor of the CAP and the bloc's second largest economy, is its most vocal proponent.

Tourism

The European Union is a major tourist destination, attracting visitors from outside of the Union and citizens travelling inside it. Internal tourism is made more convenient for the citizens of some EU member states by the Schengen treaty and the Euro. All citizens of the European Union are entitled to travel to any member state without the need of a visa.

France is the world's number one tourist destination for international visitors, followed by Spain, Italy and the United Kingdom at 2nd, 5th and 6th spots respectively. It is worth noting however a significant proportion of international visitors to EU countries are from other member states.

London, the capital of the United Kingdom is also the world's most visited city and the highest in tourism receipts, before Paris.

Companies

The European Union's member states are the birthplace of many of the world's largest leading multinational companies, and home to its global headquarters. Among these are distinguished companies ranked first in the world within their industry/sector, like Allianz, which is the largest financial service provider in the world by revenue; WPP plc which is the world's largest advertising agency by revenue; Airbus, which is the world's largest aircraft manufacturer; Air France-KLM, which is the largest airline company in the world in terms of total operating revenues; Amorim, which is the world's largest cork-processing and cork producer company; ArcelorMittal, which is the largest steel company in the world; Inditex which is the biggest fashion group in the world; Groupe Danone, which has the world leadership in the dairy products market.

Anheuser-Busch InBev is the largest beer company in the world; L'Oréal Group, which is the world's largest cosmetics and beauty company; LVMH, which is the world's largest luxury goods conglomerate; Nokia Corporation, which is the world's largest manufacturer of mobile telephones; Royal Dutch Shell, which is one of the largest energy corporations in the world; and Stora Enso, which is the world's largest pulp and paper manufacturer in terms of production capacity, in terms of banking and finance the EU has some of the worlds largest notably HSBC and Grupo Santander, the largest bank in Europe in terms of Market Capitalisation.

Many other European companies rank among the world's largest companies in terms of turnover, profit, market share, number of employees or other major indicators. A considerable number of EU-based companies are ranked among the worlds' top-ten within their sector of activity. Europe is also home to many prestigious car companies such as Audi, Mercedes, Jaguar Land Rover, Volkswagen, BMW group as well as volume manufacturers such as Fiat, PSA group and Renault.

Gini index

To date, one of the most commonly used measures of income inequality is the Gini index. The Gini coefficient measures income inequality on a scale from 0 to 1. On this scale 0 represents perfect equality with everyone having exactly the same income and 1 represents perfect inequality with one person having all income. According to the UN (UN), Gini index ratings for countries range from 0.247 in Denmark to 0.743 in Namibia. Most post-industrial nations had a Gini coefficient in the range 0.25 to 0.40. In 2005 the Gini index for the EU was estimated at 0.31 and as a comparison the USA had 0.463.

Regional variation

Comparing the richest areas of the EU can be a difficult task. This is because the NUTS 1 & 2 regions are not homogenous, some of them being very large regions, such as NUTS-1 Hesse (21,100 km²) or NUTS-1 Île-de-France (12,011 km²), whilst other NUTS regions are much smaller, for example NUTS-1 Hamburg (755 km²) or NUTS-1 Greater London (1,580 km²). An extreme example is Finland, which is divided for historical reasons into mainland Finland with 5.3 million inhabitants and Åland, an autonomous archipelago with a population of 27,000, or about the population of a small Finnish city.

One problem with this data is that some areas, including Greater London, are subject to a large number of commuters coming into the area, thereby artificially inflating the figures. It has the effect of raising GDP but not altering the number of people living in the area, inflating the GDP per capita figure. Similar problems can be produced by a large number of tourists visiting the area. The data is used to define regions that are supported with financial aid in programs such as the European Regional Development Fund. The decision to delineate a Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS) region is to a large extent arbitrary (i.e. not based on objective and uniform criteria across Europe), and is decided at European level (See also: Regions of the European Union).

Top 10: economically strongest NUTS-1 and NUTS-2 regions

The 10 NUTS-1 and NUTS-2 regions with the highest GDP per capita are almost all, except two, in the first fifteen member states: Prague and Bratislava are the only ones in the 12 new member states that joined in May 2004 and January 2007. The leading regions in the ranking of NUTS-2 regional GDP per inhabitant in 2008 were Inner London in the United Kingdom (343% of the average), the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg (279%) and Bruxelles/Brussels in Belgium (216%). Figures for these three regions, however, are artificially inflated by the commuters who do not reside in these regions ("Net commuter inflows in these regions push up production to a level that could not be achieved by the resident active population on its own. The result is that GDP per inhabitant appears to be overestimated in these regions and underestimated in regions with commuter outflows.").

Another example of artificial inflation is Groningen. The calculated GDP per capita is very high due to the large natural gas reserves in this region. However, Groningen is in fact one of the poorest parts in the Netherlands. Among the 40 NUTS-2 regions exceeding the 125% level, ten were in Germany, five in the Netherlands, four each in Austria and United Kingdom, three each in Spain and Italy, two each in Belgium and Finland, one each in the Czech Republic, Denmark, Ireland, France, Slovakia and Sweden, as well as the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. The NUTS Regulation lays down a minimum population size of 3 million and a maximum size of 7 million for the average NUTS-1 region, whereas a minimum of 800,000 and a maximum of 3 million for NUTS-2 regions ¹ . This definition, however, is not respected by Eurostat. E.g.: the région of Île-de-France, with 11.6 million inhabitants, is treated as a NUTS-2 region, while the state of Bremen, with only 664,000 inhabitants, is treated as a NUTS-1 region.

Rank NUTS-2 Region Member state GDP per capita in Euros As % of EU-27 average 1. Inner London  United Kingdom 78,000 332 % 2. Luxembourg  Luxembourg 62,500 266% 3. Île-de-France  France 54,100 223 % 4. Hamburg  Germany 44,100 188 % 5. Bratislavský kraj  Slovakia 41,800 178 % 6. Bruxelles-Cap., Brussels Hfdst.  Belgium 41,500 177 % 7. Praha  Czech Republic 41,200 175 % 8. Stockholm  Sweden 40,400 172 % 9. Groningen  Netherlands 40,000 170 % 10. Åland  Finland 38,500 164 %

Rank NUTS-1 Region Member state GDP per capita in Euros As % of EU-27 average 1. Luxembourg  Luxembourg 70,000 279% 2. Île-de-France  France 54,100 216 % 3. Bruxelles-Cap., Brussels Hfdst.  Belgium 51,100 206 % 4. London  United Kingdom 49,200 196 % 5. Hamburg  Germany 47,100 188 % 6. Bremen  Germany 39,500 158 % 7. Åland  Finland 36,300 145 % 8. West-Nederland  Netherlands 36,300 145 % 9. Östra Sverige  Sweden 35,000 140 % 10. Hessen  Germany 34,800 139 % 11. Noord-Holland  Netherlands 34,500 138 % 12. Bayern  Germany 33,900 135 % 13. España central  Spain 33,500 134 % 14. Ireland  Ireland 33,300 133% 15. Baden-Württemberg  Germany 32,400 129 % 16. Ostösterreich  Austria 32,400 129 % 17. Westösterreich  Austria 32,200 128 % 18. Zuid-Nederland  Netherlands 32,100 128 % 19. Catalunya  Spain 31,900 127 % 20. Nord Ovest  Italy 31,500 126 %

Source: Eurostat

Economically weakest NUTS-2 regions

The twenty lowest regions in the ranking in 2008 were all in Bulgaria, Romania, Poland and Hungary, with the lowest figures recorded in Severozapaden in Bulgaria (27% of the average), followed by Nord-Est (29%) in Romania, Severen tsentralen in Bulgaria (29%) and Yuzhen tsentralen in Bulgaria (31%). Among the 64 regions below the 75% level, fifteen were in Poland, seven each in the Czech republic and Romania, six each in Bulgaria and Hungary, four each in Italy and Portugal, three each in Greece, France (all overseas departments) and Slovakia, two in the United Kingdom, one in Spain, as well as Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

Rank NUTS-2 Region Member state GDP per capita in Euros As % of EU-27 average 1. Severozapaden  Bulgaria 6,400 27 % 2. Nord-Est  Romania 6,900 29 % 3. Severen tsentralen  Bulgaria 6,900 29 % 4. Yuzhen tsentralen  Bulgaria 7,200 31 % 5. Sud-Vest Oltenia  Romania 8,400 36 % 6. Severoiztochen  Bulgaria 8,400 36 % 8. Yugoiztochen  Bulgaria 8,500 36 % 7. Sud-Est  Romania 8,900 38 % 9. Észak Magyaroszág  Hungary 9,300 40 % 10. Sud – Muntenia  Romania 9,500 40 %

Rank NUTS-1 Region Member state GDP per capita in Euros As % of EU-27 average 1. Severna i Iztochna Bulgaria  Bulgaria 8,300 33 % 2. Macroregiunea Doi  Romania 8,300 33 % 3. Region Wschodni  Poland 10,100 40 % 4. Alföld és Észak  Hungary 10,300 41 % 5. Macroregiunea Patru  Romania 10,700 43 % 6. Macroregiunea Unu  Romania 10,800 43 % 7. Region Północny  Poland 12,200 49 % 8. Yugozapadna i Yuzhna Tsentralna Bulgaria  Bulgaria 13,700 55 % 9. Region Północno-Zachodni  Poland 13,700 55 % 10. Dunántúl  Hungary 13,800 55 % 11. Region Południowy  Poland 14,000 56 % 12. Latvia  Latvia 14,100 56% 13. Region Południowo-Zachodni  Poland 14,300 57 % 14. Lithuania  Lithuania 15,300 61% 15. Départements d'Outre-Mer  France 16,400 65 % 16. Estonia  Estonia 17,000 68% 17. Sud  Italy 17,200 69 % 18. Macroregiunea Trei  Romania 17,300 69 % 19. Isole  Italy 17,400 69 % 20. Açores  Portugal 18,100 72 %

Source: Eurostat

Richest & Poorest NUTS Regions (GDP PPP 2009)

Richest & Poorest NUTS-2 Regions (GDP PPP 2009) Member State Region GDP per capita in Euros As % of EU-27 average  European Union 23,500 100.0%  Austria 29,300 125% Richest Wien 37,900 161 % Salzburg 33,400 142 % Vorarlberg 30,900 131 % Tirol 30,800 131 % Oberösterreich 29,200 124 % Steiermark 25,400 108 % Kärnten 24,400 104 % Niederösterreich 24,100 102 % Poorest Burgenland 19,800 84 %  Belgium 27,700 118% Richest Bruxelles-Cap., Brussels Hfdst. 52,500 223 % Antwerpen 31,700 135 % Vlaams Brabant 29,700 126 % Brabant Wallon 28,100 119 % West-Vlaanderen 26,000 111 % Oost-Vlaanderen 25,000 107 % Limburg 22,300 95 % Liége 20,700 88 % Namur 19,600 84 % Luxembourg 18,800 80 % Poorest Hainaut 18,100 77 %  Bulgaria 10,300 44% Richest Yugozapaden 17,700 75 % Yugoiztochen 8,500 36 % Severoiztochen 8,400 36 % Yuzhen tsentralen 7,200 31 % Severen tsentralen 6,900 29 % Poorest Severozapaden 6,400 27 %  Cyprus 23,500 100%  Czech Republic 19,300 80% Richest Praha 41,200 175 % Jihovýchod 17,500 75 % Střední Čechy 17,300 74 % Jihozápad 16,700 71 % Moravskoslezsko 15,900 68 % Severozápad 15,700 67 % Severovýchod 15,700 67 % Poorest Střední Morava 15,500 66 %  Denmark 28,900 123% Richest Hovedstaden 34,900 149 % Midtjylland 27,000 115 % Nordjylland 25,900 110 % Syddanmark 25,800 110 % Poorest Sjælland 21,100 90 %  Estonia 14,900 64%  Finland 26,900 115% Richest Åland 38,500 164 % Etelä-Suomi 31,000 132 % Länsi-Suomi 24,200 103 % Pohjois-Suomi 22,200 95 % Poorest Itä-Suomi 20,000 85 %  France 25,400 108% Richest Île-de-France 54,100 223% Rhône-Alpes 25,500 109 % Alsace 23,900 102 % Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur 23,700 101 % Midi-Pyrénées 22,800 97 % Pays de la Loire 22,600 96 % Aquitaine 22,600 96 % Champagne-Ardenne 21,800 93 % Upper Normandy 21,800 93 % Burgundy 21,600 92 % Centre 21,600 92 % Brittany 21,200 90 % Corsica 21,200 90 % Nord-Pas-de-Calais 20,700 88 % Auvergne 20,500 87 % Poitou-Charentes 20,300 86 % Franche-Comté 20,200 86 % Languedoc-Roussillon 20,200 86 % Lorraine 20,000 85 % Lower Normandy 19,800 84 % Limousin 19,700 84 % Picardy 19,400 83 % Martinique 16,900 72 % Réunion 15,700 67 % Guadeloupe 15,500 66 % Poorest French Guiana 12,400 53 %  Germany 27,200 116% Richest Hamburg 44,100 188 % Oberbayern 37,700 160 % Bremen 37,500 160 % Darmstadt 37,100 158 % Düsseldorf 31,300 133 % Stuttgart 31,100 132 % Mittelfranken 31,000 132 % Karlsruhe 30,700 131 % Oberpfalz 28,600 122 % Tübingen 28,100 120 % Schwaben 27,900 119 % Köln 27,400 117 % Niederbayern 27,000 115 % Unterfranken 26,900 115 % Hannover 26,900 114 % Kassel 26,700 114 % Oberfranken 26,400 112 % Freiburg 26,200 111 % Saarland 25,800 110 % Detmold 25,400 108 % Gießen 25,200 107 % Braunschweig 25,200 107 % Berlin 24,800 106 % Arnsberg 24,700 105 % Rheinhessen-Pfalz 24,600 105 % Schleswig-Holstein 24,100 103 % Weser-Ems 23,700 101 % Münster 23,100 98 % Koblenz 22,600 96 % Trier 22,400 95 % Leipzig 21,600 92 % Brandenburg-Südwest 21,300 91 % Dresden 20,900 89 % Lüneburg 19,900 85 % Sachsen-Anhalt 19,800 84 % Thüringen 19,800 84 % Mecklenburg-Vorpommern 19,800 84 % Chemnitz 19,600 84 % Poorest Brandenburg-Nordost 18,400 78 %  Greece 22,100 94% Richest Αττικής – Attica 29,100 124 % Βορείου Αιγαίου – North Aegean 26,800 114 % Στερεά Ελλάδα – Central Greece 20,500 87 % Δυτικής Μακεδονίας – West Macedonia 20,300 86 % Κρήτη – Crete 19,900 85 % Ιονίων Νησιών – Ionian Islands 19,100 81 % Πελοποννήσου – Peloponnese 17,900 76 % Κεντρικής Μακεδονίας – Central Macedonia 17,900 76 % Νοτίου Αιγαίου – South Aegean 17,900 76 % Θεσσαλίας – Thessaly 17,000 72 % Ανατολικής Μακεδονίας και Θράκης – East Macedonia and Thrace 16,500 70 % Δυτική Ελλάδα – West Greece 15,500 66 % Poorest Ηπείρου – Hepirus 15,300 65 %  Hungary 15,200 65% Richest Közép Magyarország 25,500 109 % Nyugat Dunántúl 14,200 60 % Közép Dunántúl 12,600 54 % Dél Dunántúl 10,500 45 % Dél Alföld 10,100 43 % Észak Alföld 9,900 42 % Poorest Észak Magyaroszág 9,300 40 %  Ireland 30,000 128% Richest Southern and Eastern 33,300 142 % Poorest Border, Midland and Western 20,800 89 %  Italy 24,300 104% Richest South Tyrol 34,700 148 % Lombardia 31,300 133 % Valle d’Aosta 31,100 133 % Emilia–Romagna 29,900 127 % Trentino 29,300 125 % Lazio 28,400 121 % Veneto 28,100 120 % Friuli-Venezia Giulia 27,200 116 % Toscana 26,800 114 % Piemonte 26,100 111 % Liguria 26,100 111 % Marche 24,600 105 % Umbria 22,500 96 % Abruzzo 20,300 86 % Molise 19,700 84 % Sardegna 18,800 80 % Basilicata 17,600 75 % Puglia 16,200 69 % Sicilia 16,100 68 % Calabria 15,900 68 % Poorest Campania 15,800 67 %  Latvia 12,000 51%  Lithuania 12,800 55%  Luxembourg 62,500 266%  Malta 19,200 82%  Netherlands 31,000 132% Richest Groningen 40,000 170 % Utrecht 36,900 157 % Noord-Holland 35,400 151 % Noord-Brabant 31,100 132 % Zuid-Holland 30,900 131 % Zeeland 28,600 122 % Limburg 26,900 114 % Overijssel 26,900 114 % Gelderland 26,600 113 % Friesland 25,300 108 % Drenthe 23,700 101 % Poorest Flevoland 22,700 97 %  Poland 14,300 61% Richest Mazowieckie 22,800 97 % Dolnośląskie 15,500 66 % Śląskie 15,300 65 % Wielkopolskie 15,100 65 % Pomorskie 13,900 59 % Łódzkie 13,000 55 % Zachodniopomorskie 12,500 53 % Małopolskie 12,200 52 % Lubuskie 12,200 52 % Kujawsko-Pomorskie 12,100 51 % Opolskie 11,600 50 % Świętokrzyskie 11,100 47 % Warmińsko-Mazurskie 10,500 45 % Podlaskie 10,500 45 % Podkarpackie 9,800 42 % Poorest Lubelskie 9,600 41 %  Portugal 18,800 80% Richest Lisboa 26,400 112 % Madeira 24,600 105 % Algarve 19,900 85 % Açores 17,700 75 % Alentejo 17,000 72 % Centro 15,600 66 % Poorest Norte 14,900 64 %  Romania 11,000 47% Richest Bucureşti – Ilfov 26,100 111 % Vest 12,100 52 % Centru 10,700 46 % Nord-Vest 10,100 43 % Sud – Muntenia 9,500 40 % Sud-Est 8,900 38 % Sud-Vest Oltenia 8,400 36 % Poorest Nord-Est 6,900 29 %  Slovakia 17,000 73% Richest Bratislavský kraj 41,800 178 % Západné Slovensko 16,100 68 % Stredné Slovensko 13,600 58 % Poorest Východné Slovensko 11,500 49 %  Slovenia 20,500 87% Richest Zahodna Slovenija 24,600 105 % Poorest Vzhodna Slovenija 16,900 72 %  Spain 24,200 103% Richest Madrid 31,900 136 % Basque Country 31,600 134 % Navarre 30,500 130 % Catalonia 28,200 120 % Aragón 26,700 113 % La Rioja 26,500 113 % Islas Baleares 25,700 110 % Cantabria 23,500 100 % Castilla y León 23,200 99 % Asturias 22,500 96 % Ceuta 22,000 94 % Galicia 21,800 93 % Comunidad Valenciana 21,400 91 % Islas Canarias 20,500 87 % Melilla 20,300 87 % Murcia 20,300 86 % Castilla-La Mancha 19,600 84 % Andalucía 18,600 79 % Poorest Extremadura 16,900 72 %  Sweden 28,100 119% Richest Stockholm 40,400 172 % Västsverige 26,200 112 % Mellersta Norrland 25,800 110 % Övre Norrland 24,800 106 % Småland med öarna 24,000 102 % Sydsverige 24,000 102 % Östra Mellansverige 23,800 101 % Poorest Norra Mellansverige 23,500 100 %  United Kingdom 26,000 111% Richest Inner London 78,000 332 % North Eastern Scotland 37,200 158 % Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire 33,400 142 % Bedfordshire & Hertfordshire 27,200 116 % Gloucestershire, Wiltshire & Bristol 26,800 114 % Cheshire 26,600 113 % Surrey, East & West Sussex 26,600 113 % Hampshire & Isle of Wight 25,900 110 % Eastern Scotland 25,800 110 % Leicestershire, Rutland & Northamptonshire 24,700 105 % South Western Scotland 23,500 100 % East Wales 23,300 99 % East Anglia 23,200 99 % Outer London 22,600 96 % Greater Manchester 22,500 96 % West Yorkshire 22,500 96 % West Midlands 22,000 94 % Herefordshire, Worcestershire & Warwickshire 22,000 93 % Dorset & Somerset 22,000 93 % North Yorkshire 21,800 93 % Derbyshire & Nottinghamshire 21,800 93 % Kent 21,100 90 % Essex 20,900 89 % Northumberland and Tyne & Wear 20,700 88 % Cumbria 20,600 88 % Devon 20,300 86 % East Riding & Northern Lincolnshire 19,800 84 % Highlands & Islands 19,800 84 % Lancashire 19,600 83 % Northern Ireland 19,500 83 % Shropshire & Staffordshire 19,300 82 % South Yorkshire 19,300 82 % Merseyside 18,600 79 % Lincolnshire 18,500 79 % Tees Valley & Durham 18,200 77 % Cornwall & Isles of Scilly 16,900 72 % Poorest West Wales & The Valleys 16,100 68 %

Richest & Poorest NUTS-1 Regions (GDP PPP 2008) Member State Region GDP per capita in Euros As % of EU-27 average  European Union 25,100 100.0%  Austria 31,100 124% Richest Ostösterreich 32,400 129 % Westösterreich 32,200 128 % Poorest Südösterreich 26,700 106 %  Belgium 28,800 115% Richest Bruxelles-Cap., Brussels Hfdst. 54,100 216 % Vlaams Gewest 28,800 115 % Poorest Région Wallonne 21,000 84 %  Bulgaria 10,900 44% Richest Yugozapadna i Yuzhna Tsentralna Bulgaria 13,700 55 % Poorest Severna i Iztochna Bulgaria 8,300 33 %  Cyprus 24,400 97%  Czech Republic 20,200 80%  Denmark 30,800 123%  Estonia 17,000 68%  Finland 29,500 118% Richest Åland 36,300 145 % Poorest Manner-Suomi 29,500 118 %  France 26,700 107% Richest Île-de-France 51,100 212 % Centre-est 26,000 104 % Sud-ouest 23,700 95 % Méditerranée 23,600 94 % Ouest 23,300 93 % Bassin parisien 23,000 92 % Est 22,800 91 % Nord-Pas-de-Calais 21,700 87 % Poorest Départements d'Outre-Mer 16,400 65 %  Germany 29,000 116% Richest Hamburg 47,100 188 % Bremen 39,500 158 % Hessen 34,800 139 % Bayern 33,900 135 % Baden-Württemberg 32,400 129 % Nordrhein-Westfalen 29,100 116 % Saarland 28,700 114 % Niedersachsen 25,500 102 % Rheinland-Pfalz 25,100 100 % Schleswig-Holstein 24,900 99 % Berlin 24,700 99 % Sachsen 21,500 86 % Sachsen-Anhalt 21,400 85 % Thüringen 21,100 84 % Brandenburg 20,500 82 % Poorest Mecklenburg-Vorpommern 20,400 81 %  Greece 23,500 94% Richest Attica 28,200 113 % Aegean Islands, Crete 24,200 97 % Central Greece 20,900 83 % Poorest Northern Greece 19,600 78 %  Hungary 16,200 64% Richest Közép Magyarország 26,800 107 % Dunántúl 13,800 55 % Poorest Alföld és Észak 10,300 41 %  Ireland 33,300 133%  Italy 26,000 104% Richest Nord Ovest 31,500 126 % Nord Est 31,000 124 % Centro 29,000 116 % Isole 17,400 69 % Poorest Sud 17,200 69 %  Latvia 14,100 56%  Lithuania 15,300 61%  Luxembourg 70,000 279%  Malta 19,500 78%  Netherlands 33,500 134% Richest West-Nederland 36,300 145 % Noord-Nederland 34,500 138 % Zuid-Nederland 32,100 128 % Poorest Oost-Nederland 28,200 112 %  Poland 14,100 56% Richest Region Centralny 19,200 77 % Region Południowo-Zachodni 14,300 57 % Region Południowy 14,000 56 % Region Północno-Zachodni 13,700 55 % Region Północny 12,200 49 % Poorest Region Wschodni 10,100 40 %  Portugal 19,500 78% Richest Madeira 25,800 103 % Continente 19,400 77 % Poorest Açores 18,300 73 %  Romania 11,700 47% Richest Macroregiunea Trei 17,300 69 % Macroregiunea Unu 10,800 43 % Macroregiunea Patru 10,700 43 % Poorest Macroregiunea Doi 8,300 33 %  Slovakia 18,100 72%  Slovenia 22,800 91%  Spain 25,900 103% Richest Madrid 33,500 134 % Noreste 31,900 127 % Este 27,400 110 % Noroeste 23,300 93 % Canarias 22,600 90 % Centro 22,000 88 % Poorest Sur 20,200 81 %  Sweden 30,700 122% Richest Östra Sverige 35,000 140 % Södra Sverige 28,100 112 % Poorest Norra Sverige 27,800 111 %  United Kingdom 28,700 115% Richest London 49,200 196 % South East (England) 30,400 121 % Scotland 28,000 112 % East of England 27,200 109 % South West (England) 26,100 104 % East Midlands (England) 25,100 100 % West Midlands (England) 24,800 99 % North West (England) 24,200 97 % Yorkshire & the Humber 24,000 96 % Northern Ireland 22,800 91 % North East (England) 22,200 89 % Poorest Wales 21,200 85 %

Source: Eurostat