BERLIN, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- Private household wealth in Germany increased once again to an unprecedented level in the second quarter (Q2) of 2018, a monthly report published on Wednesday by the German Central Bank (Bundesbank) shows.
According to the report, total financial assets held by Germans increased in value by 80 billion euros (92.3 billion U.S. dollars) or 1.4 percent to 5,977 billion euros between the first quarter (Q1) and Q2 2018. Taking 1,755 billion euros in liabilities into account as well, net financial household in German wealth was officially measured at a record 4,222 billion euros (plus 66 billion).
The German Central Bank's definition of private household wealth includes cash, bank deposits, equities and insurance claims. Bundesbank reports exclude real estate holdings in their regular assessments, however, contain no information with regards to the distribution of wealth.
The rise in financial assets in Q2 was attributed to famously-high savings rates among Germans, as well the favorable development of capital markets between April and June. A recent study found that inhabitants of the country save 10.2 percent of their income on average, an unusually high share by international standards.
In spite of a long-standing low interest rate environment, the Bundesbank noted that cash and simple, highly-liquid and low-yield savings accounts remained the most popular asset classes in Germany. The category increased in value by a further 43 billion euros to a total of 2,371 billion euros in Q2 and thus accounted for nearly 40 percent of total wealth in the Eurozone's largest economy.
The report also found that insurance, and pension funds, which are also counted among the low-yield low-risk category by investors, remained highly attractive in Germany. The value of the asset class grew by 18 billion euros to 2,241 billion euros between Q1 and Q2.
Although just over 10 million shareholders were recorded in Germany at the start of the year, the highest number measured in a decade, the appetite for equities among the country's traditionally risk-averse investors was largely stagnant in Q2. Stocks and investment funds accounted for a combined 1,215 billion euros of German wealth in the three-month period after 1,196 billion euros in Q1.
As held true for the previous quarter, households continued to take advantage of low interest rates by taking on more debt (plus 0.8 percent). The majority of these liabilities was concentrated in the real estate sector.
