The results of a Slovak Statistics Office survey released on Wednesday, August 25, show that 42 percent of the country's households save regularly, around 34 percent of consumers are braking even financially, and 23 percent are living on debt or from their savings.
Asking consumers whether they will manage to save some money in the near future, Consumer Barometer also reported that a third of respondents answered positively. No less than 64 percent of those polled, however, do not expect to be able to save anything in the course of the next year.
Barometer also canvassed the views of Slovaks on the country's unemployment situation. The unemployment rate was 12.3 percent last month. A total of 43 percent of respondents believe it will rise still further in the next year, while a fifth expect the opposite and 32 percent foresee the level remaining unchanged.
The figures also indicate that 18 percent of consumers have sensed some improvement in their financial standing over the past 12 months, 38 percent take the opposite view and, according to 44 percent of households, their situation remained unaltered.
Some 15 percent of those surveyed expect improvement in their financial status, whereas 51 percent and 29 percent respectively of those surveyed see their situation as continuing unchanged or becoming more unfavourable, the TASR newswire wrote.
Source: TASR
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
