In October, for the first time in 2020, the French withdrew more money from their Livret A passbook accounts than they deposited, a fact that confirms the gradual normalization of savings. The last time the Livret A had negative inflows was in December 2019.
An outflow of over one billion euros
Livret A outflows reached 940 million euros in October. Combined with the Livret de développement durable et solidaire (LDDS), total outflows amounted to 1.01 billion euros, compared with 1.28 billion euros in September.
However, this decrease in savings is not exceptional in itself, as October is almost always, with the exception of 2011 and 2012, a month of outflows, due in particular to the payment of local taxes and back-to-school expenses. However, this outflow confirms a certain normalization of savings by the French, who set aside no less than 110 billion euros in their Livret A, LDDS and current accounts in 2020.
Savings as a lever for economic recovery
The government has its eye on these savings which, if spent, would support economic recovery, whether through consumption or business investment.
Several announcements were made in this regard: Bpifrance has created the "Bpifrance Entreprises 1" fund , to encourage French people to invest in unlisted French companies, and the Relance label has been introduced to encourage private individuals to make equity investments in companies. But savings are still favored by the French, in a more than uncertain economic climate.
At European Union level, private savings have increased by 1.7 points of GDP in 12 years, between 2007 and 2019. So France is not an isolated case. The month of November, marked by a second confinement, will probably have encouraged the French to save once again, and Livret A and LDDS inflows should therefore once again be positive.