Facing the fragile economic situation, many Germans plan to hold their money even more tightly in the new year than before. This is evident from the “Team Bank Liquidity Barometer” study, which the newspapers of the Funke Media Group (Thursday editions) reported.
According to the study, a quarter of all respondents plan to save more in 2025 than in the current year. 46% do not plan to change their behavior, and 15% would like to save less. The desire to save is particularly pronounced among the young: 38% of the 18- to 29-year-olds surveyed plan to save more in 2025 than in 2024.
Moreover, 24% of all respondents plan to plan their expenses more carefully. For gifts, 35% of the citizens plan to spend less in the next year – compared to only 6% who plan to invest more. 45% will not change their consumption behavior at this point.
“The many people want to form reserves in view of the current economic situation and also weigh their expenses more carefully in the next year” said the Chairman of the Board of the Team Bank, Christian Polenz, to the Funke newspapers. The stagnation of the German economy in combination with the numerous global crisis hotspots has unsettled the citizens. Many consumers are still haunted by the high price increases of the past years, even if the real wages have recently risen again, Polenz added.
The Germans assess their current and future financial situation more pessimistically than in the past nearly two years. The liquidity index of the bank sank for the first time since the beginning of 2023 from 11.50 points to 11.25 points between July and November.
Compared to the survey in July, the index value decreased by three points among those under 30, while it increased by 1.25 points among those 30 to 49 and over 50, indicating a slight improvement, according to the bank.
Generally, older people worry more about their financial situation than the younger respondents. The respondents between 30 and 49 years old are the most satisfied, with 71% of them assessing their situation as at least good. Almost behind come the 18- to 29-year-olds with 69%. For those 50 to 79 years old, it is 61%.
Looking ahead to the next three to five years, 36% believe that their financial situation will be better than today, while 25% expect a deterioration. The older people look surprisingly pessimistic into the future. 35% of those over 50 years old expect their financial situation to worsen. For those 30 to 49 years old, this value is 17%, and for those under 30, it is only 12%.