Credit Agricole : Reinventing the savings landscape
May 31, 2018 at 08:53 am EDT
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Stormy weather has lashed France in recent weeks, creating an electric atmosphere in more ways than one. Hot-button issues abound and reforms rumble on, prompting some commentators to predict that a warmer economic climate may lead to natural risks.
An opinion poll published Thursday by Le Figaro Economie serves as a reminder to French political leaders that people are pragmatists. Fifty per cent of the respondents said pay was still their main incentive for working, an opinion voiced more strongly by men than women (56% versus 44%). The second motive, inevitably, is work/life balance.
Workers are worthy of their wages, says the old proverb. And the higher the wage, the greater the motivation. That's the key takeaway from the 'Workforce View in Europe 2018' survey published by Automatic Data Processing Inc. Unsurprisingly, ADP's main finding is that career fulfilment hinges on pay. The next is what French workers intend to do with the money they earn. How will they spend or invest it? One of the biggest surprises, which has confounded the dire forecasts from financial specialists over the past year or more, is that life-insurance investment is back in favour. According to Le Figaro, net inflows - deposits minus withdrawals - reached €2 billion in April. 'Since the start of the year,' says the paper, 'households have deposited a net €7.5 billion on their insurance contracts, equivalent to the total invested for the whole of 2017. Outstanding investment in life insurance is nearing the €1.7 trillion mark (€1.697 billion).
The main trend observed over the past 12 months is that savers are turning increasingly to unit-linked equity contracts, which, though riskier, offer higher potential returns than euro-denominated funds. 'Since the beginning of the year, €1 billion per month has been invested in equities,' says Bernard Spitz, President of the French Insurance Federation (FFA). It should be noted that the key concern for French savers at the moment is how to renew their investment strategy. Households who last year invested heavily in property now want to build up their savings again.
Significantly, 83% of French people think they will be short of money when they retire. Their top priority, therefore, is to put a roof over their heads, and then to earn additional income. That two-phase strategy has been in evidence in recent months. People are taking a close look at workplace savings and reconsidering the stock market. They are mobile and active, and they know how to diversify. They have become champions in investment products. So, to help them, we need to understand these investments, be creative and reinvent the savings landscape.
Christian Moguérou
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Crédit Agricole SA published this content on 31 May 2018 and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 31 May 2018 12:52:03 UTC
Crédit Agricole S.A. is one of the leading European banking groups and is the leading financial backer of the French economy. Net Banking Product breaks down by activity as follows:
- retail banking (30.1%): activities in France (Crédit Lyonnais) and abroad. Furthermore, the group is present in France via its 39 regional networks of branches (making it the biggest French banking network);
- finance, investment and market banking (30.1%): standard and specialized bank financing activities (financing for acquisitions, projects, aeronautical and maritime assets, etc.), stock operations, consulting in mergers and acquisitions, investment capital, etc.;
- asset management, insurance and private banking (25.9%);
- specialized financial services (13.9%): consumer loan, leasing and factoring (No. 1 in France).
At the end of 2023, Crédit Agricole S.A. managed EUR 835 billion in current deposits and EUR 516.3 billion in current credits.
NBP is distributed geographically as follows: France (46%), Italy (20%), European Union (14.3%), Europe (7.2%), North America (6%), Japan (1.3%), Asia and Oceania (3 .5%), Africa and Middle East (1.3%), Central America and South America (0.4%).