Current Singaporean workers expect to save longer for retirement, says survey

Citizens are insufficiently informed about retirement, the survey added.

One of the pressing issues that Singaporean workers deal with everyday is saving for retirement, and a survey finds out that current workers are starting to save earlier rather than retiring later in order to fund a comfortable retirement.

According to a report by HSBC, the average Singaporean starts saving for retirement at 32 and continues for the next 29 years.

“This is nine years more than their predecessors, who saved an average of 20 years, starting later at age 39,” the report noted.

Meanwhile, HSBC said despite the longer and earlier period of saving, 41% of the current working age Singaporeans wish they had started to save earlier and 38% have stopped saving due to various difficulties.

According to Matthew Colebrook, head of retail banking and wealth management at HSBC Singapore, the unfortunate causality of a rising cost of living is that people nowadays are having to save further and for longer than their predecessors.

“Unfortunately in many instances, life events are also getting in the way from setting aside money earlier or in a consistent manner,” he said.

Meanwhile, the report said Singaporeans are also increasingly relying on using cash savings, supplemented by day-to-day salary and a property down-size to fund their retirement.