What are Filipinos saving up for?

Saving for health and household emergencies is on top of financial priorities for over half of Filipinos in a new global survey from Nielsen.Ranking a list of 14 long- and short-term money goals, Filipino respondents placed greater importance on actively saving or investing now than in the future for these two points.Around 54% of Filipino respondents said they are saving up for health-related issues using a mix of local bank accounts, life insurance, government-initiated retirement schemes, provident fund and saving schemes, and investment-linked insurance policy.Another 51% are preparing for unexpected emergencies at home via actual money saving, life insurance, company pension and government-initiated schemes, provident fund, or other investment schemes.“The saying, “health is wealth” rings true for Filipino consumers. The value that they put on health is clearly underlined by the fact that consumers tend to actively save now in order to fund their health care rather than later,” Stuart Jamieson, Nielsen Philippines managing director.In contrast, Filipino respondents indicate that they would rather save in the future for other financial goals such as upgraded property purchase, first- and second-time property purchases, personal luxury, financial legacy, new businesses, their children’s futures, loss of job or income, higher education, and important milestones such as marriage, birth of a baby and retirement.Jamieson said there is an opportunity to better educate consumers on the saving and investment strategies.“There is a gap between respondents planning to save in the future versus active saving… Saving priorities especially for the acquisition or upgrading of properties, also provide a picture of the aspirations for upward mobility of consumers.”Three-fourths (83%) of Filipino respondents believe they will achieve all their financial goals for the future, only 30% of them are confident that their current planning will be enough. However, only a third (53%) say they will need to closely monitor and adjust investments from time to time in order to best meet their financial expectations.The research firm interviewed 30,000 online respondents from 60 countries from 14 August 14 to 6 September for the Nielsen Global Survey of Saving and Investment Strategies.