After several straight years of booming consumption, Bulgarian households went back to tightening their belts at the first symptoms of the economic slowdown. Per capita income fell to 276 leva in January 2009, the level in May 2008, data from the National Statistical Institute (NSI) has shown.

At the same time, Bulgarians tried to increase savings at the expense of a more drastic cut in expenses, NSI statistics revealed.

Household budgets shrank by 100 leva per capita, compared to December 2008. Some of the difference is explained by Christmas bonuses, but January’s figure is also smaller than October’s 296 leva and November’s 320 leva.

Concerns about the size and the duration of the crisis have changed Bulgarians’ consumer behaviour. The family wallet is thinning, but people are still trying to set more money aside. January’s savings of 24 leva per capita is double the amount saved for the first 10 months of 2008.

The rise in household savings comes with falling spending, a trend that started in October 2008, when consumers first began postponing big purchases.

The year started with a deep cut in day-to-day expenses, most heavily for clothes and shoes. Bulgarians spent an average six leva on that in January, as much as they did in the summer, even with discounts of up to 40 per cent offered by retailers after the New Year.

Other areas that saw a decrease in spending were food and drinks, furniture and electronic goods, transport and communications.

Source: Dnevnik