Britain’s recession is the steepest on record. Among the distinctive features of the downturn, in which the economy contracted by 20.4 per cent in the second quarter, is that households are saving at a record rate. Unfortunately, such optimism is probably unfounded. The government will need to unlock that source of demand, rather than rely on it. We don’t yet have data for the household savings ratio — the proportion of disposable income that’s saved — for the second quarter but we know it rose sharply in the first.

Source: The Times August 13, 2020 15:56 UTC