Half of Romanians (49.4%) consider that their financial situation this year has worsened compared to last year, and 43% estimate that they will do worse in the next period, show the results of a survey conducted by CEC Bank in partnership with the banking comparator FinZoom.ro.
When asked how they appreciate their financial situation in 2022 compared to last year, 49.4% of respondents say that it has worsened, 41.5% say that their financial situation has remained the same and only 9.1% believe that it has improved.
Regarding the next period, 42.3% believe that it will get worse in the future and only 28.3% expect their financial situation to improve, and 29.3% do not expect any changes.
Questioned if they exchanged money at the beginning of March, to have cash in the house, 20% of respondents say they did so, in the context in which the Romanian market faced an increase in demand for foreign currency in the first days after the outbreak of armed conflict in Ukraine.
Energy prices: the main cause for concern
Increasing energy prices are the main concern in the next period, for 24.7% of respondents, three times more than those who are worried that they could lose their job.
This concern came as housing and utilities expenditures have a significant share in the Romanian budget: 45.9% of respondents say that they allocate more than 40% of their monthly income to these expenses, while only 10.3% of Romanians allocates less than 20% of monthly income to housing expenses.
More than a third (35.6%) of respondents say they fail to pay their bills every month, and about 10.1% of them face problems every month.
Among the top concerns, in addition to energy prices (24.7%) is the risk of the conflict escalating in Ukraine (19.8%), health risks in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic (16.3%). The increase in inflation and the impact on revenues and savings worries 13.2% of respondents, and a potential food shortage – 12.5% of them.