In the past five years, Swedish households have transitioned from borrowing to significantly increasing their savings, with a notable shift towards investing in funds. This change, highlighted by Statistics Sweden, marks a dramatic departure from previous decades where borrowing outpaced saving.
Swedish Households Shift from Borrowing to Saving: A New Trend Emerges
Swedish Households Shift from Borrowing to Saving: A New Trend Emerges
In the past five years, Swedish households have transitioned from borrowing more to significantly increasing their savings. The way households save has also changed during this period.
An analysis from Statistics Sweden (SCB) reveals that household savings have increased by 974 billion SEK over the past five years.
"During the two decades before the pandemic, households borrowed more than they saved. Then, a dramatic change occurred. Instead of living beyond their means, households pulled the emergency brake," says Linus Eriksson, an economist at SCB, according to a press release.
The nature of saving has also transformed over the last five years. Between 2020 and 2022, households made large deposits, approximately 200 billion SEK per year, into savings accounts. In 2023 and 2024, deposits fell to under 50 billion SEK per year. Instead, savings in funds increased significantly.
"Between 2023 and 2024, households net purchased fund shares for nearly 250 billion SEK. This can be compared to total fund purchases of 18 billion SEK in the two preceding years," says Linus Eriksson.