‘Saving for rainy day’ culture growing

Consumers are becoming more confident in the amounts they are saving, according to a report issued by Nationwide UK (Ireland) and the ESRI.

The report states that 44% of people are saving as much as they believe they should — an increase of 4% on 12 months ago.

Up to 78% of people are expecting to maintain their level of saving over the next six months, an increase of 8%, while 12% of people expect to save more.

The vast majority of respondents have accounts in euro, while 3% of people asked said that they had savings accounts in sterling.

There was a slight increase in the amount of people who believe that now is a good time to save, which went from 29% in April to 32% in May.

A similar survey, issued for KBC Bank, found that four out of five men are saving for a rainy day.

The study, which examined the saving habits of 1,000 Irish people, found that 81% of men own a savings account, compared with 75% of women.

The largest increase in savings account ownership is in the 35-44 age group, which grew from 75% in the first quarter of the year, to 79% in the second quarter.

The savings culture is set to increase, with 49% of people set to increase their savings over the next 12 months, while 16% of people are planning to add to their savings over the next three months.

Executive director and head of retail banking at KBC Bank Ireland Dara Deering said the study can only mean good things for savings in the country.

“It’s encouraging to see that the savings ethos in Ireland is growing.”