Sentiment tracker - Current savings
Tracking New Zealanders’ opinions on a range of issues, the Sentiment Tracker is a nationally representative study.
How confident New Zealanders feel about savings can indicate how optimistic they are about their finances. Respondents were asked about their current level of savings that they have accumulated within the past three months as well as their level of satisfaction with those savings.
Key facts
Consumers have adjusted their savings over the past three months. There has been an increase in those saving 5-10% of their income (27%, up from 23% in June ’21) and a significant increase in those saving 11-20% (13% cf. 10%). A quarter of New Zealanders remain satisfied with their level of savings (26% cf. 24%). Significantly fewer report that they do not have any savings (11% cf. 15%) and say they have not been able to save anything over the past three months (24% cf. 28%).
What are they saving for?
For more than half (52%) of New Zealanders, their focus is on saving to invest in their property (such as buying a house, reducing their mortgage, investing in a rental property or renovations/ improvements). Many New Zealanders appear to be anticipating changes to the official cash rate by the Reserve Bank and interest rate hikes by retail banks. There has been a significant increase in the proportion prioritising their savings toward reducing their mortgage (22% cf. 17%).
Building up retirement savings and security for the immediate future has also been a priority for one in three savers (36% and 32%, respectively). Twenty-nine percent of New Zealanders have prioritised their savings over the past three months for a holiday.
Media inquiries
If you're a journalist or researcher and would like to obtain exclusive data insights for a story, feel free to get in touch with Gemma or Raksha today.
Business inquiries
If you are interested in purchasing more detailed Consumer sentiment data - including a comprehensive insights report and the data in spreadsheet form - please contact Elisa Lamb, Consumer Trusted Programme Manager - [email protected].
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