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Where are all the household savings?

A longer-term perspective

11 August 2023

Australians saved a lot of money during COVID-19. They saved $246 billion more than usual in fact. Bank data shows that households have now started drawing on that savings buffer. Is this good news or bad news? Do all demographics have savings buffers? We use demographic data to answer these questions and find that all income groups (lowest to highest) have some buffers. Amongst age cohorts, the groups aged 25 or older have saved more. Younger people have few buffers. The excess savings will result in a gradual slowdown in retail spending, potentially milder than many fear. The impact of higher interest rates will hurt higher income households the most as they carry more debt relative to income. Those over 65 are net beneficiaries of higher rates. Given data on spending by demographics, liquor and food at-home are likely to outperform. Dining out and travel may suffer when higher income earners pull back on spending.

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