Switzerland's food, drinks Europe's priciest: Eurostat

Switzerland was the most expensive European country for food and non-alcoholic drinks in 2017 for a third straight year, 68 percent more than the European Union (EU) average, statistics released by Eurostat showed Wednesday.

Eurostat provides statistical information to the European Commission, and it found that Switzerland, which is not a member of the EU, was the second-most expensive European country behind Iceland for consumer goods, at 59 percent more than the EU average.

Switzerland was also the second most expensive European country for clothing, 53 percent higher than the EU average, but behind Iceland, and the third most expensive for hotels and restaurants, behind Iceland and Norway.

Switzerland's personal transport was close to the EU average, while electricity, gas and other fuels were 7 percent more expensive, consumer electronics, 5 percent cheaper and furniture 9 percent less than the EU average.

The Swiss Federal Statistical Office said that in 2014, the median monthly gross salary of a single Swiss adult was 6,250 Swiss francs (5,420 euros or 6,275 U.S. dollars).

While Swiss salaries might seem higher than in other countries, especially in some sectors, the cost of living in the Alpine country is very high, Swissinfo, the website of the national broadcaster reported.

It cited people spending about a third of their income on rent alone, although inflation has remained very low in recent years.