"European Household Savings Dynamics: Under Inflation and Post-Pandemic" by Mateusz Mierzejewski and Julia Szczurek
  •  
  •  
 

ORCID

Mateusz Mierzejewski: 0000-0001-8542-2373

Julia Szczurek: 0009-0003-7517-3328

Keywords

Covid-19 pandemic, inflation, household savings

Abstract

The Covid-19 pandemic, which began in early 2020, triggered a global health and economic crisis, leading to unprecedented changes in consumer behaviour and the functioning of national economies. This article examines the impact of the pandemic and the subsequent inflationary crisis on household savings levels in selected European countries. The analysis includes an assessment of household responses to changing macroeconomic conditions, such as inflation, interest rates, and household incomes, as well as the effectiveness of implemented monetary and fiscal policies. The study employs a neural network model considering autoregressive relationships in a panel data approach. The research covers data from 2000–2023 for fifteen European countries. The results indicate a two-phase reaction of households: an initial sharp increase in savings in the first year of the pandemic, followed by a decline in these values below projected levels. Four groups of countries with similar reaction trajectories were identified, highlighting the diversity in savings strategies. The study emphasizes the importance of flexibility in managing economic crises and adjusting policies to specific local conditions. These findings are crucial for policymakers, enabling the development of more effective strategies for responding to future economic crises.

Acknowledgments

Funding

The publication was financed from the subsidy granted to the Cracow University of Economics – Project nr 077/EER/2022/POT.

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and publication of the article.

Declaration About the Scope of AI Utilization
The authors did not use an AI tool in the preparation of the article

First Page

70

Last Page

82

Page Count

13

Received Date

05.11.2025

Revised Date

10.03.2025

Accept Date

14.03.2025

Online Available Date

15.05.2025

DOI

10.7172/2353-6845.jbfe.2025.1.5

JEL Code

G51

Publisher

University of Warsaw

Share

COinS