To main content

Savings Barometer, 2nd quarter 2018:

Lower household savings

Statistical news from Statistics Sweden 2018-08-30 9.30

Households’ financial savings, new savings minus increase in debt, amounted to SEK 49 billion in the second quarter of 2018, which is SEK 8 billion lower than in the second quarter of 2017. Households’ loans increased by 6.0 percent at an annual rate, down by barely 0.6 percentage points compared with the previous quarter.

New savings in financial assets was SEK 111 billion, while debts increased by SEK 62 billion in the quarter, which resulted in SEK 49 billion in financial savings. Although financial savings was positive, it was SEK 8 billion lower than in the corresponding quarter of 2017. Net financial wealth, that is, financial assets minus liabilities, amounted to SEK 9 521 billion at the end of the quarter.

Individual financial savings excluding accruals, which show savings in more liquid assets, were slightly positive and low compared with the second quarter in the past ten years. These savings are lower than total savings during any single quarter mainly due to occupational and premium pensions that are excluded from individual savings.

Households’ loans increased by nearly SEK 61 billion in the second quarter 2018 and amounted to SEK 4 129 billion at the end of the quarter. Households’ loans decreased by SEK 16 billion compared with the second quarter of 2017. Bank loans contributed to the decrease in the period, while other loans increased slightly.

The annual growth rate of households’ loans decreased

Following the introduction of amortisation requirements in June 2016, additional requirements on amortisation of new loans were introduced in March 2018. In the second quarter, the rate of increase in households’ loans continued to decrease, and was 0.6 percentage points lower than in the first quarter of 2018. A corresponding level of annual growth rate in loans can only be found as far back as early 2015. Households’ loans consist nearly 80 percent of housing loans in banks and housing credit institutions.

Households’ loans, transactions (left) and growth rate (right), SEK billions and percent

Source: Statistics Sweden

Net purchases of tenant ownership rights

Households’ ownership of tenant-owned apartments are a financial asset and are included in the Savings Barometer. Tangible assets such as one- or two-dwelling buildings with ownership rights are not included in the Savings Barometer. Net purchases of newly produced tenant-owned apartments and apartments with changing rights of tenancy to tenant-owned apartments decreased slightly in the second quarter of 2018 and amounted to SEK 8 billion, which is over SEK 5 billion less than in the second quarter of 2017.

Bank deposits on the rise

Bank deposits increased by SEK 53 billion, which is high, although SEK 3 billion less than in the second quarter of 2017. Households made net purchases of shares for almost SEK 10 billion and net sales of funds for over SEK 2 billion in the second quarter. Households continued their net purchases in other funds, but made net sales in interest funds and equity funds in the quarter. Net purchases were made for SEK 5 billion in other funds and net sales of interest funds and equity funds were made for SEK 1 billion and SEK 6 billion respectively. Households also made set sales of structured products, which includes index-linked bonds, of SEK 7 billion in the quarter.

Definitions and explanations

Financial savings are calculated as the difference between transactions in financial assets and transactions in liabilities.

No major revisions or methodology changes are published in the Savings Barometer. These are instead published in the Financial Accounts, where there is more time for calculations and reconciliation with other sectors, and where revision documentation is published. However, minor revisions can occur due to, for instance, revised primary statistics.

In connection with the publication of the Savings Barometer for the second quarter of 2018, the entire time series will be updated from the first quarter 2017 onwards with the revisions introduced in the Financial Accounts’ publication on 20 June.
More detailed descriptions of major revisions are described in the Financial Accounts:

Statistical News for Financial Accounts 1st quarter 2018

Next publishing will be

2018-11-22 at 09:30.

Feel free to use the facts from this statistical news but remember to state Source: Statistics Sweden.

Statistical agency

Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority

Address
Box 7821
103 97 Stockholm

Producer

Statistics Sweden, National Accounts

Address
Solna strandväg 86
171 54 Solna
E-mail
nrinfo@scb.se

Enquiries

Lana Omanovic

Telephone
+46 10 479 49 67
E-mail
lana.omanovic@scb.se

Nicolai Nystrand

Telephone
+46 10 479 45 45
E-mail
nicolai.nystrand@scb.se