Personal Saving Rate (from NIPA accounts)

Importance: **

Definition: The Personal Saving Rate (PSR) is the fraction of personal income that is not consumed. Is is in the 4% range in the United States.

Related Indicators:  While the personal savings rate from the NIPA account is published quarterly together with the GDP report, it is possible to compute a monthly savings rate from personal consumption expendiures and personal (disposable) income report that is published on a monthly basis.
 
Source: Department of Commerce, BEA, NIPA dataset.

Frequency: Quarterly, revised monthly. The PSR for a given quarter is released together with the GDP figures  in the first month following a quarter as the "advance estimate". The "preliminary estimate" is published in the second month, followed by the "revised" estimate in the third month.

Availability: Three to four weeks following the reported quarter
 
Direction: Pro-cyclical as it tends to increase in booms and fall in recessions.

Timing: Coincident

Volatility: Low

Likely Impact on Financial Markets:

Ability to affect markets: Low.
 
Analysis of the Indicator:
The personal savings rate is in the 4% range in the United States. This has led to the concern that the savings rate is too low in the United States and may negatively affect the ability to invest and accumulate capital. The personal savings rate, however, does not include the other component of private savings (i.e. corporate savings), public savings (the negative of the government budget deficit) and foreign savings, i.e. the negative of current account. Note that National Savings less National Investment is equal to the Current Account.

WEB Links

Graphs of the latest personal savings rate data from The Economic Statistics Briefing Room of the White House

A table with the most recent Personal Savings data  from the BEA

The latest GDP report from BEA includes an analysis of the savings trends in the latest quarter

See the Dismal Scientist Homepage for charts, tables and analysis of the latest monthly report on income, consumption and savings.

You can chart personal savings and other NIPA data from the NIPA VISUALIZATION PAGE

You can see Savings charts with the Economic Chart Dispenser

You can create customized consumption charts with the Economic Chart Maker  Tip: type "SAVINGS" in the Label section of the form and choose the transformation of the data you are interested in.

An analysis of the latest GDP report from First Union

An Analysis of the GDP report from Morgan Stanley's Stephen Roach