Maltese households accumulated €2.54 billion in gross savings during 2025, as disposable income continued to grow faster than consumption expenditure, according to new figures published by the National Statistics Office (NSO).

The latest Annual Non-financial Accounts of the Household Sector, published on Friday, show that the household saving rate increased to 19.2 per cent of gross disposable income, up by one percentage point from 2024.

This means that, on average, households saved a larger proportion of their disposable income than in the previous year.

The increase in savings coincided with continued growth in household purchasing power.

Gross disposable income per capita increased by 4.2 per cent in 2025, while real disposable income per capita, which adjusts for inflation, rose by 4.5 per cent.

Although these figures indicate an improvement in purchasing power, income growth moderated considerably compared to 2024, when nominal and real disposable income per capita increased by 11.6 per cent and 7.9 per cent respectively.

According to the NSO, the slowdown reflected weaker growth in employee compensation, net property income, and net social contributions and benefits.

Household income outpaces consumption

The increase in household savings was largely driven by disposable income growing faster than household expenditure.

In 2025, total gross disposable income increased by 6.4 per cent, compared to a 5.2 per cent increase in household consumption expenditure.

Total household consumption reached approximately €10.7 billion, with spending increasing by 5.5 per cent in real terms.

On a per capita basis, real household consumption expenditure rose by 3.2 per cent.

The figures suggest that households were able to increase their spending while also setting aside a greater proportion of their income.

However, aggregate savings figures do not indicate how savings are distributed across different income groups or whether all households experienced an improvement in their financial position.

The NSO also reported that real adjusted gross disposable income per capita, which includes goods and services provided free of charge by Government and non-profit institutions, increased by 4.4 per cent in 2025.

This was lower than the 8 per cent growth recorded in 2024.

Household investment approaches €1 billion

Beyond consumption and savings, household investment also increased during the year.

Household investment reached €976 million in 2025, compared to €918 million in 2024, representing an increase of approximately 6.3 per cent.

Despite the increase in absolute terms, the household investment rate remained broadly stable at 7.4 per cent of gross disposable income.

Meanwhile, households recorded net lending of €2.14 billion, up from €1.77 billion in the previous year.

In national accounting terms, net lending represents the financial resources available to the household sector after accounting for investment and capital transfers.

A positive net lending position indicates that the household sector, taken as a whole, generated more resources than it required to finance its investment.

This does not necessarily mean that households placed the equivalent amount into bank deposits, as the measure reflects the broader financial position of the sector.