Car expenses outpace food spending

Austrians are forking out more on their cars than on food, new figures show.Statistik Austria said today (Weds) that 12.1 per cent of an average household’s overall expenditure were invested in foodstuff, while 15 per cent are soaked up by costs affecting cars and motorcycles. With 12.8 per cent, investments on leisure activities are also higher than food spending.The agency said Austrian households’ average monthly expenditure was 2,910 Euros. Living and heating costs make up the largest share among Statistik Austria’s research categories with 23.8 per cent. The aforementioned investments on individual traffic come second. Only 2.6 per cent are spent on healthcare products, while 2.4 per cent are paid out for alcoholic drinks and tobacco products, interviews with more than 6,500 households across Austria revealed.The data also confirms certain gender clichés as single men were found spending at least twice as much on cars, tools, alcohol and cigarettes than women who live on their own. Male singles spent around 2,050 Euros a month while single women’s overall expenditure is significantly lower with 1,850 Euros. Figures show that women spend more on clothes, shoes and products and services of the health and education sector.News that nearly 24 per cent of Austrians’ overall investments are dedicated to living costs and the heating bill come on the heels of revelations that the price for heating oil shot up by 30 per cent from February 2010 to the same month of the current year.Research also shows that the Austrian inflation rate rose by three per cent at the same time. It was the highest year on year increase since October 2008.A recent investigation by the Austrian Labour Chamber (AK) revealed that a shopping basket containing the 41 most common products of daily life were currently four per cent more expensive than in January.The price supermarkets charged for one kilogram of flour rose by 69 per cent, while bananas became 23 per cent more expensive. However, the prices for some goods declined since the beginning of the year. Especially healthcare and cosmetic products are now costing less than in January, according to the AK.