Euro area income steady as EU sees slight rise

Household real income per capita remained stable in the euro area during the first quarter of 2026, while recording a slight increase across the European Union, according to a report from Eurostat. The statistical office of the European Union said the figure for the euro area followed a 0.2 per cent rise in the fourth quarter of 2025, indicating a pause in growth. At the same time, household real consumption per capita also remained unchanged in the euro area, after increasing by 0.5 per cent in the previous quarter. Across the EU as a whole, household real income per capita rose by 0.1 per cent in the first quarter of 2026, following a 0.2 per cent increase in the final quarter of 2025. However, household real consumption per capita declined by 0.2 per cent in the EU, reversing a 0.5 per cent rise recorded in the previous quarter. Eurostat noted that the broadly stable income levels in the euro area and the modest increase in the EU were mainly driven by positive contributions from employee compensation and social benefits other than transfers in kind. In contrast, the largest negative contribution to income in the euro area came from net property income and other net current transfers, while in the EU it stemmed from current taxes and net social contributions. The data also showed that the household saving rate remained stable in the euro area during the first quarter of 2026. Across the EU, the saving rate increased by 0.2 percentage points compared with the previous quarter, reflecting a slight improvement in household financial buffers. Among member states with available data, saving rates rose in seven countries and fell in nine, highlighting diverging trends across the bloc. The most significant increase in household saving was recorded in Hungary, rising by 3.4 percentage points, according to Eurostat. At the same time, the steepest declines were observed in Romania, down 5.3 percentage points, Greece, down 3.7 percentage points, and Austria, down 2.5 percentage points. Meanwhile, the household investment rate edged down by 0.1 percentage point in both the euro area and the EU during the first quarter of 2026. Across member states, household investment increased in four countries, remained stable in one, and declined in eleven, pointing to a general softening in investment activity. The largest increase in household investment was recorded in Romania, up 2.2 percentage points, while the sharpest drop was seen in Greece, down 0.7 percentage points.