More than half of consumers in major economies did not build up their savings during the COVID-19 pandemic, a survey showed.
The research in 18 nations by YouGov PLC, shared exclusively with Bloomberg News, punctures the idea that households have a cushion against a deepening cost of living crisis.
YouGov said that 51 percent of respondents failed to add to their savings during the pandemic.
Photo: Reuters
The rate was lowest for Germany, at 39 percent, while Italy’s figure was just 40 percent. Canada, the UK and US also had results of below 50 percent.
The survey covered 20,000 adults across 18 countries and undercuts hopes that a global savings glut would help households weather a spike in inflation. Instead, it paints an uneven picture of finances, potentially paving the way for deepening inequality in the coming months.
YouGov’s survey also suggests the nest eggs that did accumulate are rarely being spent on luxury items.
Of those who saved, about half are managing to hold onto the extra money, while more than one-quarter spent the money on bills or other essential purchases.
Just 13 percent used it to fund holidays and social events since restrictions lifted, and 19 percent used the money for home improvements or moving house.
British consumers are more pessimistic than their peers in major economies about the prospects for inflation and their own personal finances, YouGov’s survey said.
The findings add to evidence that the UK is being hit harder than most by a surge in consumer prices and shortages after the pandemic.
Of the British respondents, 71 percent expected the cost of living to “increase a lot” over the next 12 months.
That is higher than any other nation and well above the 48 percent reading in the US.
In total, nine-in-10 of those in the UK are bracing for higher costs, also the most in the survey.
The research backs up suggestions from economists that the UK is facing a unique inflation shock — and one that is likely to prove more enduring than in other advanced economies.
On top of the energy and supply chain shocks faced by other countries, the UK is grappling with a falling currency, the aftershocks of its departure from the EU and tax increases that threaten to eat further into incomes.
In the face of those events, 61 percent of British respondents expected their personal financial situation to worsen over the next year.
That is more than any other nation in the poll.
More than one-quarter predicted that things would get “a lot worse.”
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