Ireland and Denmark are the most expensive countries in the European Union, new data released today shows.
Figures from Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, shows Ireland and Denmark had prices of 140% above the EU average.
The biggest gap in prices between the most expensive and least expensive countries was for hotels and restaurants.
Price levels ranged from 46% of the EU average in Bulgaria, 54% in Romania and 62% in Hungary, to 155% of the average in Denmark, 137% in Sweden and 133% in Finland.
Alcohol and tobacco ranked second in terms of price level difference, with the lowest price levels registered in Bulgaria (64% of the EU average), Poland (72%) and Hungary (79%) and the highest in Ireland (205%), Finland (173%), Sweden (136%) and Denmark and France (both 134%).
This large price variation is mainly due to differences in taxation of these products, said Eurostat.
Food and non-alcoholic beverages were cheapest in Romania (69% of the EU average) and Poland (72%), while they were most expensive in Luxembourg (125% of the average), Denmark (120%) and Ireland (119%).
