Savings ratio UK - Economics Help (2024)

Definition of Household savings ratio: The percentage of disposable income that is saved. (1)

Total savings = Disposable income – Household consumption

UK Saving Ratio

Latest UK household savings ratio: 2021 = 10% But, by 2021 Q4 the saving ratio had fallen to 6.2%
By contrast, the average savings ratio in the past 54 years is 9.2% of disposable income.

Rise in savings during Covid Pandemic

2020/21 saw a spike in the savings ratio due to the unusual circ*mstances of the Covid Pandemic. With normal economic activity curtailed many households were unable to spend on usual items like holidays, leisure and going out. Therefore, household savings rose sharply. With the end of covid lockdowns, the savings ratio fell. The forecast for savings in 2022 and 2023 is for savings to fall sharply due to the cost of living crisis, with many households seeing a fall in real income. This will cause households to run down savings to meet the rising cost of fuel and energy.

UK Saving ratio. Source: National income accounts NRJS dataset

NRJS = Households + NPISH (Non-Profit Institutions Serving Households)

Low saving ratio 2017-2019

This period saw a significant fall in the UK savings ratio to a record low. This fall in the savings ratio has been caused by

Fall in real wages
Depreciation in Sterling post-Brexit – pushing up the cost of living and contributing to falling in real wages
To maintain spending, consumers have borrowed and dipped into savings
Temporary factors (high tax payments on dividends)

Saving ratio and base interest rates

Gross savings

Source: RPQL, ONS

This shows total quarterly gross household + non profit savings.

Savings ratio since 1963

In the post-war period, the UK savings ratio was on an upward trend. Between 1964 and the early 1980s, we see a long-term rise. There was a peak in the recession of 1980/81.

However, between 1992 and 2008 (in a period known as the great moderation), the saving ratio fell to an all-time low of 4.6%.

At the start of the credit crunch and recession of 2008-10, the saving ratio rose rapidly as consumers became more risk averse and wanted to pay off debts and increase savings. This rise in the saving ratio contributed to a fall in consumer spending and negative economic growth.

The sharp fall in real GDP in 2008/09 mirrored the sharp rise in the savings ratio.

The concern is that economic growth post-2012 is partly driven by a falling saving ratio, that is unsustainable without a rise in real wages.

Saving ratio in 2008-12 recession

The saving ratio in the 2008-12 recession didn’t rise as much as during the 1990-92 recession. This is because:

In the 1991-92 recession, interest rates were much higher (reaching a peak of 15%). Since 2009, interest rates have fallen to 0.5%. Therefore, from the perspective of interest rates there is a lower incentive to save in 2012
The 2008-12 recession has caused a bigger long term squeeze on real incomes (due to higher tax, rising energy prices and falling real wages). Therefore, people have had less room to increase savings and pay off debt. They have been struggling to meet bills and so they don’t have the same luxury of increasing saving.

Reasons for a fall in savings ratio during 1992-2007

Availability of credit until 2007 encouraged people to take out loans.
Rising House prices encouraged people to borrow because of their positive wealth effect. Home-owners could re-mortgage
Cultural/social trends encouraged an attitude of borrowing and spending.
Low-Interest rates. E.g. in 1991-92 interest rates were over 12%. In the 2000s interest rates fell to 3%. Interest rates are currently 4.5% and less than inflation. This negative real interest rate discourages saving.

Note: There was also a fall in the savings rate in the Lawson boom of the 1980s

Why do saving ratios tend to rise in a recession?

In a recession, people worry about unemployment and so are likely to be more cautious about borrowing and spending. If you fear unemployment, you don’t want to be saddled with debt repayments on a new car. People tend to delay big purchases during economic uncertainty. Saving ratios rose during a recession such as 1991-92 and 2008-12.
Banks are trying to improve their balance sheets by attracting more deposits and lending less. It is often hard to get a loan during a recession.
During 2008-12 real interest rates were often negative which, in theory, reduces the incentive to save. However, low real interest rates can be outweighed by more important factors, such as the fear of being made unemployed. In other words, people are saving more – despite the poor returns from saving.

Saving ratio and the paradox of thrift

The paradox of thrift is the idea that if everyone saves at once, it can cause macro-economic problems (i.e. recession). From an individual perspective, it makes sense to save and pay off debts in a recession. But, if everyone pursues the same course of higher savings, it causes a fall in aggregate demand.

See: Paradox of thrift

Savings ratio and fiscal policy

In a recession, a sharp rise in the savings ratio means that consumer spending will fall significantly. In Keynesian economics, this is a reason for the government to borrow and increase spending. The logic is

If the saving ratio rises, government spending needs to take the place of private sector spending and investment. Otherwise, the recession will be deeper.
If the saving ratio rises, the private sector has more available funds to purchase government bonds.

When does Keynesian economics work?

Benefits of a higher saving ratio

A rapid rise in the savings ratio can cause a fall in aggregate demand and recession. However, in the long term, a higher savings ratio is often considered to help promote more sustainable economic growth.

Higher savings enables more private sector investment. Many see this level of investment as a key factor in determining the long term economic growth rate.

Problems of low savings ratio

A very low savings ratio can indicate:

Unbalanced economy with over-reliance on consumer spending.
Build up of personal debt.
Current account deficit, (with imports greater than exports.)

Since 2010, the fall in the savings ratio has occurred during a widening of the current account deficit.

Related pages

Paying off debt and savings
Difference between saving and investment
Paradox of saving – why people save more when they say it is a bad time to save
Definition of disposable income

Notes:

(1) The ONS define the savings ratio (NRJS) –Households’ saving as a percentage of total available households’ resources.

(2) The saving ratio is subject to be revised at a later date.