The greatest urge to save of families seems to have passed. While massive amounts of money were set aside during the lockdowns, saving has now fallen back to normal levels. This is evident from figures from the National Bank.
In the third quarter of last year, the household savings rate – what percentage of their disposable income they save – fell to 13.5 percent. For comparison: in the full corona crisis in the second quarter of 2020, this was almost 26 percent, in the second quarter of 2021 it was 18.3 percent.
The disposable income of households rose 1.3 percent in the third quarter, while more was possible due to the relaxation of the corona measures. As a result, consumer spending rose by 7.3 percent. That means less money was saved.
With a savings rate of 13.5 percent, we are approaching the long-term average, according to the National Bank.
Not only in Belgium less is being saved. The eurozone savings rate fell to 15 percent in the third quarter, the lowest level since the outbreak of the corona crisis, according to figures from the European statistical office Eurostat. Yet Europeans are still saving more than before the corona crisis.
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