DZ Bank: Germans’ financial assets at record high of over 7 trillion

Frankfurt, Jan. 2, (dpa/GNA) – People in Germany saved like mad during 2020 and are therefore richer than ever before, according to calculations by DZ Bank, seen by dpa.

The financial assets of private households are likely to have increased by 393 billion euros (477 billion dollars) to a record value of 7.1 trillion euros in 2020.

DZ Bank economist Michael Stappel attributes the growth of 5.9 per cent compared with the previous year largely to a historically high savings rate.

Many people kept their money together out of concern about short-time work or unemployment, and the temporary closures in the retail sector also put the brakes on consumption.

DZ Bank expects the savings rate to have reached a record level of 16 per cent in 2020, while the BVR banking association had even forecast a figure of around 17 per cent at the beginning of December.

According to these calculations, private households in Germany put aside 16 or 17 euros out of every 100 euros of disposable income over the year.

According to figures from the Federal Statistical Office, the highest savings rates in Germany to date were measured in 1991 and 1992, at 12.9 per cent in each case. In 2019, it was 10.9 per cent.

While stock markets recovered comparatively quickly in 2020 from the coronavirus crash in February and March, gains in the value of stocks and mutual funds contributed only a small portion of the increase in private financial assets.

“Ultimately, the growth in financial assets in 2020 was almost entirely due to extremely high savings as a result of the coronavirus crisis,” Stappel said.
GNA