People are prioritising investing in markets over paying off debts, saving in a bank account, purchasing property, and spending on luxuries such as holidays, according to a survey.
However, the Schroders Global Investor Study found that people still have unrealistically high investment return expectations, suggesting an investment knowledge gap, the firm said, though the survey of over 22,000 investors across 30 countries also found there was a strong demand to learn more.
The greatest proportion of respondents said they planned to invest their disposable income over the next year. Just under a quarter said they intended to invest in securities such as equities, commodities, bonds or similar investments.
The next most common response was saving disposable cash either in a bank account (16%) or at home (4%), despite low or no interest.
Paying off debt, including mortgages, is a priority for just 9%, most likely due to the low cost of servicing debt, said Schroders.
Within Europe, the survey found that Sweden – where 29% said they would invest disposable income over the next year – and Italy – with 26% – were the countries where investors were the most prominent. In France, Russia and Portugal, investors are more likely to prioritise saving in bank deposits over investing.
Sasha Miller, head of market intelligence at Schroders, said: “The fact that investors are prioritising investing may be a sign that they are relatively confident, perhaps due to the current nine-year bull market, or slow but stable global economic growth.”
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