Irish consumers more optimistic about investing their income in 2023

Cost-of-living crisis is still hampering people's efforts to save money

Inflation is the top concern amongst the Irish public.

Irish consumers have a greater appetite to invest their income in the year ahead following a difficult 2022 which saw losses in the bond and equities markets.

According to a new survey, 43% of households saw the current environment as a poor time to invest. However, when asked to look forward to six months’ time, the mood changes very considerably. Just one in three see that period as a bad time to invest.

The responses come from the quarterly Bank of Ireland Savings and Investment Index which shows that inflation is the top concern amongst the Irish public. One in four cited price rises as their biggest concern, while the war in Ukraine was cited by one in five.

"For the second survey in a row, the cost of living crisis is top of the concerns for Irish households and consumers," said Bank of Ireland chief investment strategist, Kevin Quinn.

Savings

The survey of 1,000 consumers also found that the desire to save remained at a low ebb with 58% of people stating that they were either saving nowhere near what they should be or a bit less than they should be.

However, Mr Quinn said a mild recession, and an end to high rates of inflation which in turn could change the direction of interest rates, were all ingredients that could deliver a much more positive outcome for the year ahead.

"Markets are already pricing in a mild recession in both the US and EU and while we believe that will keep markets volatile at the start of the year, there are also reasons to be more optimistic about the longer-term outlook," he said.