Canadians have a lot more pocket change, even as the COVID-19 pandemic has sparked widespread job loss and business shutdowns.
According to a report that analyzed data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, an average household saved five times more disposable income in 2020 than 2019.
Savings amounted to $5,816 of a household’s total income, compared to $1,144 the previous year when the pandemic was not a widespread public health issue.
However, the spending Canadians were spared from in 2020 will be made up for by 2022, when households are forecast to accumulate an annual savings of $2,120. That is $3,697 less than what they saved in 2020.
Head of consumer research with Finder, Graham Cooke, believes the country’s downward spending trend was a result of COVID-19 and many citizens confining themselves to their homes.
“Expenses associated with going out were cut almost completely overnight – from the simple morning coffee at your favourite cafe, to that vacation you planned on taking in the winter,” Cooke elaborated.
Among four other countries analyzed (Germany, United States, Australia, and Japan) Canadians saved the biggest chunk of income during spring self-isolation, concluded the report.
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