Economic uncertainty is leading many shoppers in Finland to cut back on their grocery bill and increasingly choose stores’ own brand products over the more expensive brand-name options.
The government’s proposed tax changes for next year favour the highest-income proportion of the population, while the lowest earners will see their income decline further.
Over a quarter of a million people were out of work in Finland last month, bringing the country’s unemployment rate to its highest level since Statistics Finland began compiling the Labour Force Survey in 2009.
A Helsingin Sanomat poll finds many people are cutting back on their expenses amid worries of losing their jobs as well as the effects of the government’s austerity measures.