Indicators of economy in Greece

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic

The consequences of the COVID pandemic were not insignificant in Greece 2020. Overall, gross domestic product in 2020 fell from 205.26 billion US dollars to 188.93 billion US dollars. With a drop of 8.0 percent, the economy in Greece suffered more significant losses than other countries. The tourism sector alone slumped by around 73 percent. Fortunately, the unemployment rate actually fell from 17.3 to 16.3 percent. The country's gross debt increased by 5.1 percent. The inflation rate fell from 0.3 percent previously to -1.2 percent by the end of 2020.

In 2021, there was already a recovery and the gross domestic product increased to 214.87 billion US dollars (=104.7% of 2019).

Income and purchasing power

The average monthly income in Greece is 1,667 US Dollar per capita. In the USA, the figure is 5,911 US Dollar. However, the prices of consumer goods are also around 25.3 percent lower than in the USA. If you compare income and price levels, the result is a more expensive life in Greece than in the United States. The bottom line is that the costs do not offset the lower income, and you get about 62.2 percent less.

However, it is also important to remember that this is a purely statistical model. Both the labor output and the type and quality of the goods received always correspond to the national average on both sides of the equation - so they do not necessarily have to match. Here you can also find an international comparison of cost of living and purchasing power.

Unemployment rates in percentages 1991 - 2021

Economic performance 2021

In the Global Innovation Index, Greece ranked 44th in 2022 with 34.5 points. The index is calculated annually by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and most recently included 132 countries. The top country was Switzerland with 64.6 points. Out of the 2,000 largest listed companies in the world, 5 originate from Greece. This is determined annually in the Forbes Global 2000 list. The 5 largest companies in the country in 2022 were:

Rank 1196: National Bank of Greece (Athens)
Rank 1245: Bank of Greece (Athens)
Rank 1698: Piraeus Financial Holdings (Athens)
Rank 1707: Eurobank Ergasias (Athens)
Rank 1723: Alpha Bank (Athens)

Development of gross domestic product in billions of USD 1960 - 2021