The European Union Commissioner for Economy Paolo Gentiloni was not satisfied with Greek emergency measures on the energy crisis, noting they "are not sufficiently targeted," he said during a Q&A session after the 2022 Autumn Economic Forecast press conference on Friday.
This is not a problem exclusive to Greece, he added, as it is observed in other countries too. These energy measures amounted to 2% of Greece's GDP in 2022, one of the highest such percentages in the EU, he noted, but it is positive that they are expected to become moderate in 2023, the Commissioner added.
Asked to comment on the Commission's forecast that wage increases in Greece will remain below inflation rates, Gentiloni noted that this is a problem for almost all countries in the EU, but for different reasons in each. He explained that wages are increasing faster today than in recent years, but this increase does not cover rising inflation rates, resulting in the contraction of consumer power.
Therefore, he stressed, there are two economic risk factors lurking in the near future, the loss of purchasing power and spiraling inflation.
Further increases in inflation would also damage low-and-middle income earners, Gentiloni noted: "We cannot accept a dramatic loss of purchasing power, and we should avoid this spiralling coupling of inflation and wages," he stressed.