Unusually high household savings

Financial savings of households amounted to SEK 31 billion during the first quarter. This is an unusually high figure for a first quarter. The increase in debts has continued to slow down and households continued to save in bank accounts.

As usual, a large part of households' assets were from insurance savings, that comprise one-third of households' total assets. Insurance savings increased by SEK 40 billion, but this is somewhat lower than in the first quarters of recent years.

Households’ savings, SEK billions

Graph

Since 2008 when wealth taxation was abolished, households' bank savings have been at a lower level during the first quarter compared the other quarters of the year. During the first quarter households' holdings in bank accounts increased by SEK 9 billion. This was an unusually large inflow, and the increase was the largest during a first quarter since wealth taxation was abolished.

Low increase in debt

During the first three months of this year, households continued to take out new loans at a higher rate than they paid off their loans. This led to an increase in loans of SEK 27 billion. However, the increase in loans was the lowest in eight years. Above all, households' increase in loans continued to decrease with housing credit institutions. During the first quarter households' loans with housing credit institutions increased by SEK 11 billion. The total annual growth rate increase for all types of loans is now at 5 percent. In 2008 the growth rate increase was 10 percent.

Households’ new loans minus loans that have been paid, SEK billions

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Definitions and explanations

The financial accounts aim to provide information about financial assets and liabilities, as well as changes in savings and wealth for different sectors of society. The financial accounts' financial savings are calculated as the difference between transactions in financial assets and transactions in liabilities. The non-financial national accounts calculate financial savings as the difference between income and expenses. Financial accounts and the non-financial national accounts are based on different sources, which give rise to differences.
Financial savings and wealth of the household sector differ from the financial accounts and Statistics Sweden's savings barometer. The financial accounts also include the accrual of taxes and social security contributions. Further, the Financial Accounts present information including households' non-profit organisations.
In connection with the publishing of the Financial Accounts in the second quarter of 2011, households' holdings of foreign investment funds were revised in connection with the change of a statistical source. The revisions refer to the period 2006 and onwards. This has involved a break in the time series for households' foreign investment funds between 2005 and 2006.

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Information on the quality of the statistics, production methods and frequently requested tables and graphs.

Responsible agency

Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority
Box 7821, SE-103 97 Stockholm
Fax +46 8 24 13 35

Producer

Statistics Sweden, National Accounts
Box 24 300
SE-104 51 Stockholm
Fax +46 8 506 949 43

Enquiries

Annika Näsvall
Phone +46 8 506 942 22
E-mail firstname.lastname@scb.se
Caroline Ahlstrand
Phone +46 8 506 943 33

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