Just over half of Irish people are now regular savers, and almost all of them say that Brexit has not affected their saving patterns.
The latest Bank of Ireland-ESRI Savings and Investment Index, which measures sentiment towards savings and investment, found that 51pc of Irish people are now saving regularly. That’s up from 46pc in March.
Bank of Ireland global investment strategist Tom McCabe said the fact that Brexit hasn’t influenced savings patterns for most people was the “standout discovery” from the latest survey.
“This suggests some level of uncertainty around how Brexit could affect the Irish economy and people’s finances,” he said.
He pointed out that Irish people have built a €100bn savings buffer in recent years.
“A combination of improving employment and wages coupled with tax cuts have helped make saving more affordable for Irish people,” said Mr McCabe.
“Therefore, it seems that Irish people have certainly put some protection in place against the fallout from a hard Brexit, even if they have done so unintentionally.”
Of those surveyed, 92pc said that the UK’s planned departure from the EU had not influenced how they save.
Savers under 50 are more likely to have set aside money to deal with any Brexit fallout.
The survey’s risk barometer, which asks households how they would use a €10,000 windfall, showed that more people would consider investing the money rather than simply saving it.
Some 36pc of people said they’d invest such a windfall, compared to 25pc in February.
But 64pc still said that they would consider saving the windfall.
Article Source: http://tinyurl.com/kbwqb42
