Half of Greeks cover their needs from their deposits
Greek salaried workers cannot buy what they want but, rather, have to limit themselves to what they can afford on their reduced disposable income, a survey by the Labor Institute of the General Confederation of Greek Labor (GSEE) and the Association of Working Consumers of Greece (EEKE) showed on Tuesday.
Crucially, 47 percent of consumers surveyed said they have relied on their savings to cover their needs in the past few months, while 16 percent were forced to borrow to spend, as the reduction of incomes continued in 2015 for more than half of Greece’s wage-earners (53 percent), the survey conducted in mid-February revealed – though this is markedly better than the 70 percent rate recorded last September.
In terms of expectations for the current quarter, consumers (who responded just three or four weeks after the change in government) said that things could not get much worse: Three in four (75 percent) said incomes would remain stable (from 57 percent in September), 16 percent expected a decline (from 40 percent five months earlier) and 9 percent even expected to see their incomes rise.
