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Fifty cent coins - Source: ONE News
New research suggests many New Zealanders are financially stressed.
The survey by Financial Services Institute of Australasia says while many people are generally more optimistic about the outlook for the economy, 60% are under financial stress.
FINSIA says more than two thirds of respondents are concerned about job security or are facing a significant cut in income.
Older New Zealanders are particularly 'feeling the pinch'.
Nearly two in five, many at retirement age. say that since the global financial crisis, they have been left slightly worse off financially, while a little over one in 10 people claim to be significantly worse off financially, mainly those in the 40-59 year age group.
But many respondents say they are not planning to change their approach to spending and investment.
33% save more than 10% of their income, 29% save between 1% and 5% of their income, 14% save between 6% and 10%, while 23% say they spend all their income and save nothing.
In spite of this, the appetite for credit has continued unabated.
Of the 81% holding a credit card, 19% admit they are sometimes charged interest and 26% say claim they usually end up paying interest on their credit card debt.
And 15% are oblivious to the amount of interest charged by their credit card provider.
The FINSIA research was conducted in partnership with UMR Research.
