Survey shows changing personal finance trends

NUMBERS: The percentage of people holding mutual funds increased from 32 percent to 41.4 percent, while those with stocks fell from 42.1 percent to 31.2 percent

By Angelica Oung

STAFF REPORTER
Wednesday, Jan 16, 2008, Page 4

A survey of 4,017 workers by the Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) found that workers have changed the way they manage their assets in the past five years.

Compared to a similar survey conducted in 2002, the percentage of those putting money into properties, savings accounts, individual stocks and through "mutual aid societies" (標會) are all down, according to data released at yesterday's CLA news conference. Meanwhile, there have been an increase in those investing in mutual funds and buying insurance.

The survey was conducted to gauge the readiness of workers in this country to face retirement, said Lin Lee-jen (林麗貞), the director of the statistics department of the CLA. However, the survey did not ask workers how much they are putting away in various forms of savings or investments.

"Our savings rate in this country is still quite high, in excess of 20 percent," Lin said. "However, whether or not those savings can give us a comfortable life depends on how they are managed."

The decrease in those using mutual aid societies is the most dramatic.

While 38.7 percent of surveyed workers participated in such societies in 2001, only 10.3 percent did so last year, a drop finance experts credit to the increasing number of firms offering financial planning services in this country.

Mutual aid societies are a traditional way for individuals to obtain credit from a group of peers. One member receives dues collected from the rest of the members every month.

The member who needs the money the most submits the highest bid for the pot. Those who are not in immediate need of the money do not bid and in return receive the pot when it comes to their turn to collect.

Investment in real estate is also down as property prices have risen out of reach for many. Those who saved through investing in real estate fell from 42.7 to 17.8 percent. Those investing in stocks fell from 42.1 percent to 31.2 percent.

In the face of low interest rates in savings accounts, those using them as an investment also fell from 72.2 to 56.6 percent.

The percentage of those investing in mutual funds increased from 32 percent to 41.4 percent while the percentage of those who bought insurance rose from 48.9 percent to 57.1 percent.

Hsin Ping-lung (辛柄龍), an associate professor the Graduate Institute of National Development at National Taiwan University said that the survey would yield more useful information if it included more detail.

"So we know a greater percentage of people are buying insurance, but we don't know what kind of insurance they are buying or how much," Hsin said.

The savvy or lack thereof of individual investors could determine to what extent labor retirement benefits could be privatized, Hsin said.