Paycheck to paycheck: Why Singaporeans are struggling to save for retirement

Singapore lags behind neighbors when it comes to retirement savings.

Singaporeans are struggling to save for retirement although Singapore has one of the highest savings rates in the world, according to a report by BlackRock.

Local investors report that they save 29% of their take-home income, compared to a global average of 20%.

“Despite high savings rates, the proportion of Singaporeans saving specifically for retirement is very low relative to other Asian markets. The only Asian market surveyed with fewer people saving specifically for retirement is Japan. Common reasons given why Singaporeans have not started saving for retirement are a lack of funds and other priorities, which suggests that Singaporeans may be spreading themselves too thin financially,” noted BlackRock.

Here’s more from BlackRock:
Singaporeans are among the least likely in Asia to be saving specifically for retirement. They lag behind every Asian market surveyed, except for Japan, in this area, with only 59% of Singaporeans saving specifically for retirement compared to the 69% Asian average.

The most prevalent reasons Singaporeans are not yet saving for retirement are a lack of funds, and other priorities. 61% of Singaporeans say that the high cost of living is making it difficult to save for retirement and 70% of Singaporeans say that they are having difficulty keeping up with bills and saving for retirement.