2020 Big spenders
When it came to the countries that plan to spend the most during 2020 relative to disposable household income, Bulgaria ranked the highest with results showing 86% of monthly income will be spent during the Summer months in Europe (June, July, August). Croatia followed with a result of 72% and Latvia came in third at a 50% monthly expenditure.
Nordic countries (Sweden 31% and Denmark 29%) are set to be the most frugal, with the data revealing that an average of only 30% of monthly income will be spent by residents over the coming three months.
Australia ranked fifth on the scale, with results showing we plan to spend 43% of our monthly salary over June, July and August. This lower figure may be reflective of our spending during the winter months or the impact of international travel restrictions, according to James Logan, Ferratum Australia Country Manager.
“With non-essential travel bans still in place for overseas our data shows that many Australian’s have cancelled they travel plans, with 70% of Australian respondents indicating that they do not intend to travel in 2020. It remains to be seen if Australian’s will replace European travel plans with local ones as this may impact our spending choices.”
Spending less, saving more
28% of the total survey respondents indicated they are planning to spend a maximum of only 200 Euro (approximately 330 Australian Dollars) over the next two to three months and 12% will spend around 1,300 Euro (approximately 2,120 Australian Dollars). Only 3% of respondents across the 11 countries indicated they would spend more than 3,000 Euro (approximately 4,890 Australian Dollars) over June, July and August.
Australia ranks higher than average, with 61% of respondents planning to spend over approximately 2,000 Australian dollars (1,200 Euro) over the next two to three months.
45% of the total respondents plan to use savings to cover expenses over the next three months, while 31% have indicated they will cover costs with a Ferratum Loan.
Australian respondents indicated that 55% of spending will be covered by savings over the coming three months, and 21% indicated they will cover costs with a Ferratum Loan.
Biggest spending during COVID-19 isolation
When asked what they spent their money on the most during isolation, more than 50% of respondents stated groceries (52%) were their main expense, followed by home improvements (13%), clothes and shoes (12%) and personal care products (10%). People also supported local businesses and made the choice to order food takeaway from restaurants (7%).
Australia’s results aligned with international spending, with groceries (54%) taking the top spot for expenses outlayed during the pandemic. This was followed by ordering food from restaurants (14%), clothes and shoes (10%) and personal care products (10%).
“Australian’s continue to spend heavily on groceries and online food orders. With pubs and cafes around the country reopened, it will be interesting to see if our eating and spending habits stay aligned in this way. As winter approaches in the southern hemisphere I think we are likely to see people continue to eat at home, and the data supports that to an extent.” Said James Logan
Cash losing ground as online payments are increasing
Online payments are preferred by 52% of survey respondents, 25% still use cash on delivery and the other 22% opt for bank transfers when ordering online.
Australia (79%) is the second most digitalized country in the world when it comes to online payments, closely following Norway (86%).
Online vs physical shops
COVID-19 and the lockdown has had a significant impact on our preference to shop online in comparison to previous years. 68% of survey respondents answered that for the upcoming months they will opt to continue to shop online (68%) instead of partaking in traditional shopping (32%).
Australia’s results contrasted, with 60% of respondents stating they would choose to commence traditional shopping methods again of visiting physical stores, once the option becomes available.
Future spending – June, July, August 2020
Respondents from all 11 countries will spend the most money on the following four areas: groceries (23% of the budget), home furnishing (11%), financing children’s needs (10%) and domestic travel (10%).
All countries except Estonia stated that groceries would be their biggest expense over the coming months.
In Australia, 28% of our budget will likely go to groceries, followed by home furnishings (9%), financing children’s needs (9%) and gardening or DIY (9%).
“Ferratum’s Barometer provides insight into the way our lives have been impacted due to COVID-19. Australians’ projected spending’s are significantly different this year in comparison to last. While we are accustomed to seeing international and domestic travel as some of our key expenses, this year the bulk of our money will go toward groceries and home furnishing. As COVID-19 restrictions begin to ease we expect our spending behaviours to shift again, and these findings will be reported on in our end of year survey”, concluded James Logan.
Top spending behaviour:
Australia
Bulgaria
Croatia
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
Germany
-
Groceries
22%
-
Gardening or DIY
12%
-
Clothing and fashion
11%
-
Domestic travelling
9%
-
Social activities
9%
Latvia
Norway
-
Groceries
22%
-
Domestic travelling
15%
-
Social activities
10%
-
Home furnishings
8%
-
Gardening or DIY
8%
Romania
Sweden
-
Groceries
24%
-
Domestic travelling
13%
-
Social activities
10%
-
Gardening or DIY
9%
-
Home furnishings
8%
