1.2.4 Savings in an international context
The UK has a relatively low household savings ratio compared with other countries, as shown in Table 1.3.
| Canada | 3.3 |
| France | 16.1 |
| Germany | 11.0 |
| Italy | 4.3 |
| Japan | 1.9 |
| Portugal | 10.5 |
| Spain | 11.6 |
| Switzerland | 12.1 |
| United Kingdom | 6.6 |
| United States | 4.3 |
Footnotes
Note: The ratio for the UK in 2012 was measured at a different point in the year to that for the graphs in previous sections.The data shows the household savings ratio varying significantly between countries. The data is cross-sectional – a snapshot of a moment in time. As a result, we cannot draw too many conclusions – for example, Portugal had a negative savings ratio in 2008, but in 2012 had a savings ratio of 10.5%.
The UK household savings ratio is higher than those of Japan and the United States, but lower than those of many other European Union (EU) countries, such as France and Germany.
The reasons for these differentials are various. Cultural reasons are a key factor with some societies having a stronger tradition of saving and investing – sometimes due to the greater incidence of natural catastrophies. The financial strength of economies is also vital since households with growing affluence are better placed to have surplus income to save for the future. Access to finance is also critical: if you are confident of the ability to be able to borrow money to finance life’s major expenditures or to cover unexpected events, you may be less inclined to save to provide the funds needed to cover these.