Close to 53 percent of Bulgarians were unable to cope with unexpected financial expenses last year, Eurostat data indicate. The average for the EU stands at 34 percent.

This applies most often to one-parent families and elderly couples. The share of Bulgarians with such problems has gone down by 1 percent compared to the previous year – 2016, Eurostat says. 20 percent of Bulgarians cannot afford to buy any kind of car, whereas this percentage for the EU is 7. That Bulgarians have financial problems is confirmed by the fact that 46 percent of the population were unable to save any money. The share of people with financial problems is lowest in Malta, Austria and the Netherlands.