On average, Germans saved more of their income in the first three months of this year than ever before - at least since these figures were collected in this way.

This emerges from data that the Federal Statistical Office presented on Monday.

Accordingly, the household saving rate rose to 23.2 percent in the first quarter.

That even exceeded the 20.5 percent from the second quarter of last year from the first lockdown.

In the further course of 2020, the savings rate then fell before it now skyrocketed again.

"The savings rate continues its rollercoaster ride," said Michael Stappel, economist at DZ Bank.

Christian Siedenbiedel

Editor in business.

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    Studies have shown that involuntary saving due to the corona restrictions is the most important reason for the increased savings rate in the pandemic, not so much the precautionary saving.

    In addition, older people and people with higher incomes in particular save a lot in Corona times.

    It is expected that after the pandemic, large parts of this savings will be spent again and stimulate the economy.

    To what extent this will happen, however, is controversial among economists.

    "With the loosening of the lockdown, the combination of solid income growth and a lower savings rate will give consumption a real boost," said Deka economist Andreas Scheuerle.

    "However, part of it could be carried abroad as a result of holiday-related travel."

    100 billion euros more saved

    According to the union-affiliated Institute for Macroeconomics and Business Cycle Research (IMK), German private households saved around 100 billion euros more in the past year alone than would have been the case without the pandemic. In the coming second half of the year in particular, many households are likely to make up for this pent-up demand, IMK director Sebastian Dullien expects. "Part of that should then flow into additional consumption."

    DZ bank economist Stappel said: "Driven by the Corona crisis, the savings rate shot up to 20 percent in the second quarter of the previous year and thus to the highest value by far since reunification." which the households put on the high edge, turned out to be significantly lower, but still remained well above the average of previous years. According to the latest figures from the Federal Statistical Office, the savings rate in the first quarter has once again reached a historic record of 23.2 percent. "The seasonally strongly fluctuating savings rate is always high in the first quarter, and this year the hard lockdown was added," said Stappel. There were high savings rates in Germany even during the oil crisis,but the statistical figures are not comparable with today's. 

    Even if the current quarter was characterized by the gradual easing of the corona measures, citizens still saved a lot, said economist Stappel. That should change, however, if, with the progress made in vaccination, shopping, gastronomy, culture and vacation are possible again without major restrictions. "In the course of the second half of the year, the savings rate should even fall well below the long-term average," says the economist. Means for heavy consumption would be available. After all, in 2020 and in the first quarter of 2021, private households would have saved more than 150 billion euros in addition and mostly parked them on checking accounts. "A significant part of these additional savings should be used to make up for lost consumption and thus to push the economic upturn after the Corona crisis",said Stappel: "Only in the course of the next year should the private savings rate turn back towards the normal level."