Amid the uncomfortable and persistent inflationary pressure in the country, the income offered by savings is close to completing two years of losses to inflation.
According to a survey by the Economatica platform, the real return on savings in the 12-month period was negative by 6.58% in April, when inflation measured by the IPCA (National Broad Consumer Price Index) reached 12.13% in the same period. basis of comparison, highest level since October 2003.
The data indicate that the last time savings offered an accumulated return in 12 months that exceeded inflation was in August 2020, when the real return on investment was 0.45% in one year.
Despite the recent hike in the basic interest rate, the Selic rate, which increases the attractiveness of fixed income products in general, savings income has not changed.
Even with the Selic rate at 12.75% per year, and with forecasts to rise even more, the application of the passbook continues with the yield unchanged at 6.17% per year, plus the TR (Referential Rate).
Savings remuneration is 0.5% per month whenever the Selic rate is above 8.5% per year. When the basic rate is up to 8.5%, the savings yield is equivalent to 70% of the Selic. The application is exempt from IR (Income Tax).
“The higher the Selic rate, the more distant savings income is from even compensating for inflation, the more it is compared with other fixed income investments that are also safe, such as Treasury Direct and LCAs and LCIs, which allow for a very bigger,” said Andrew Storfer, economics director at Anefac (National Association of Finance Executives).
Despite the picture, the most recent data from the BC show that about 164 million people had some amount deposited in savings at the end of 2019.
In any case, in March of this year, withdrawals in savings accounts exceeded deposits by R$ 15.4 billion, according to data from the monetary authority.
It was the highest redemption volume for the month of March in the BC historical series, which began in January 1995, and the third consecutive month with negative funding in 2022.
With the withdrawal of funds in the month, the balance of savings (ie, the total volume invested) fell by R$10 billion, from R$1.016 trillion in February to R$1.006 trillion in March.
The flow of funds in savings began to accumulate significant withdrawals in 2021, precisely when the purchasing power of Brazilians was once again haunted by double-digit inflation.
I have over 8 years of experience in the news industry. I have worked for various news websites and have also written for a few news agencies. I mostly cover healthcare news, but I am also interested in other topics such as politics, business, and entertainment. In my free time, I enjoy writing fiction and spending time with my family and friends.
