The trillions in excess personal savings built up in the pandemic are beginning to vanish amid high inflation, according to Federal Reserve economists. The monthly saving rate fell to a 15-year low in 2022. It started a recovery in 2023, but remains well below long-term trends. Despite this slowdown in saving, consumer spending has remained robust, keeping the U.S. from recession.

“Something like $2 [trillion] to $2.5 trillion above what we would have otherwise expected were saved by American households,” said Curt Long, chief economist at the National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions.

Collectively, Americans have trillions in excess savings compared with expectations leading up to the pandemic, according to Federal Reserve economists.

Watch the video above to learn about how the personal savings rate affects you and the wider economy.

Chapters:
00:00 — Introduction
01:26 — Budgets
02:40 — The personal saving rate
05:33 — Recession?
07:48 — Ways of saving

Produced by: Carlos Waters
Edited by: Nora Rappaport
Animation: Jason Reginato
Supervising Producer: Lindsey Jacobson
Additional Footage: Getty Images
Additional Sources: Federal Reserve Board of Governors, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, U.S. Bank

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Where Did Americans’ Savings Go?