Six of Romania's eight regions, among the poorest in EU

Six of the eight development regions in Romania were among the poorest in the EU in 2008, with purchasing power in these areas below half the European average, according to Eurostat. The poorest 20 regions in EU are located in Romania, Bulgaria, Poland and Hungary, according to the Eurostat classification, which was based on GDP per capita. Of the 20 poorest regions in the EU, six are from Romania: the North-East (with a GDP representing 29 percent of the EU average), South-West Oltenia (36 percent), South-East (39 percent), South-Muntenia (39 percent), North-West (41 percent) and Central (45 percent). The Western region reported a purchasing power of 51 percent of the EU average, while the Bucharest-Ilfov region was about 13 percent above the EU average. The poorest European region in 2008 was Severozapaden, from neighboring Bulgaria, while the richest region was Inner London, with a GDP of EUR 85.800 per person - over three-fold the EU average. Irina Popescu