What is the purpose of goods and services within the European Union?

In 2022, the EU produced goods and services worth €31,674 billion, while the value of imports from countries outside the EU (excluding trade within the EU) amounted to €3,106 billion.

Nearly half (48.7%) of these goods and services were used for intermediate consumption, meaning they were used to produce other products. A significant proportion, 31.2%, was used for final consumption, typically by households or the government sector. Approximately one-tenth (10.6%) of the supply was used for gross fixed capital formation, mainly for investment, and the remaining 9.5% of the total EU supply related to exports of goods (valued at €3,291 billion).

Between 2010 and 2022, the proportions of these uses remained relatively stable. Intermediate consumption reached its lowest point in 2016 and again in 2020, when its share of the total supply reached a low of 46.3%. From 2020, there was an upward trend, peaking in 2022 at 48.7%. Conversely, the share of final consumption in the total supply was highest in 2010, at 35.3%, and gradually and steadily declined to 31.2% in 2022.

Regarding gross fixed capital formation and exports, their shares in the total supply increased from 9.8% and 7.8% in 2010 to 10.6% and 9.5% in 2022, respectively, reaching their peaks towards the end of the observed period.

The impact of COVID-19 on the economy

Supply and use tables can be a valuable tool for analyzing the impact of exogenous events on the economy. In particular, comparing data for 2019 and 2020 in 2019 prices shows the impact of COVID-19 on consumer demand in terms of changes in the volume of services consumed. A good example is the sharp decline in the volume of supply and consumption of accommodation and food services between 2019 and 2020.

Final consumption of these services by households fell by more than 50% in Croatia, Greece, and Cyprus, while Sweden recorded the smallest decline among EU countries (-16%), followed by Romania (-21%), Finland (-22%), and Poland (-23%). This trend was related to a decrease in domestic production, intermediate consumption, and value added in the accommodation and food services sector.

Eurostat/ gnews - RoZ

Translation: legacy (English)