The average quarterly total income per household member in Q3, 2012 was BGN 1120, up by 14.5% from the same period of 2011, according to the National Statistical Institute (NSI).

Wages and salaries continued to be the main source of household income with a relative share of 53.1% of the total.

In Q3, 2012, average household income per capita from wages and salaries amounted to BGN 595, up by 19.2% from the same quarter of 2011.

The relative share of wages and salaries in the total income decreased by 2.1 percentage points.

The second most important source of income for Bulgarian households was pensions.

Retirement income comprised 25.7% of the total household income, up by 3.3 percentage points.

In Q3, 2012, retirement income amounted to BGN 288 per capita, up by 1.3% from Q3, 2011.

In Q3, 2012, income from entrepreneurship increased by 0.6 percentage points from Q3, 2011, to BGN 94 per capita and a relative share of 8.4% of the total income.

The weight of other social incomes in the third quarter of 2012 was comparatively insignificant.

In Q3, 2012, other social incomes increased to BGN 39 from BGN 36, while their relative share decreased by 0.2 percentage points to 3.5%.

In Q3, 2012, monetary income had a relative share of 97.2% of the total household income, similar to the level in Q3, 2011.

Total expenditure per household member in the third quarter of 2012 amounted to BGN 1033, up by 12.6% from the Q3, 2011.

Expenditure on food and housing (energy, fuel, water, etc.) made up the largest share of total expenditure, at 52.6%.

In Q3, 2012 the largest part of the household budget was spent on food and non-alcoholic beverages.

Expenditure on food and non-alcoholic beverages amounted to an average of BGN 354 per household member, or 34.3% of the total expenditure, down by 1.9 percentage points as compared to Q3, 2011.

Expenditure on housing (water, electricity, heating, furnishing and maintenance) increased from BGN 148 in Q3, 2011 to BGN 190 per capita in Q3, 2012, and its relative share increased by 2.2 percentage points to 18.3% of the total expenditure.

In Q3, 2012, health expenditure increased by 4.3% from Q3, 2011 to BGN 48 per capita.

In Q3, 2012, health expenditure made up 4.7% of the total expenditure, down by 0.4 percentage points.

Transport and communication expenditure went up by 15.9% to BGN 114 capita, its relative share increased by 0.3 percentage points to 11% of the total household expenditure.