MOSCOW, September 10. /TASS/. About 52% of participants in a survey conducted by the Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VCIOM) believe that keeping extra cash in the bank is the best option.

"Over the past ten months, the percentage of those who think spare cash should be kept in the bank has remained consistently high at 46-52%. In August, the figure was 49%, which is 8 percentage points higher than the same period last year (August 2023 - 41%). Another 29% adhere to the alternative opinion, believing it is better to withdraw spare money from the bank," according to the text of the study published on the center’s website.

"That means that today, the percentage of people supporting storing money in the bank is almost twice that of those who think the opposite. The latest figures are largely influenced by the increase in the key rate. For example, in early August, the interest rate on bank deposits in Russian rubles was 17.5% per annum (August 2, 2023 - 9.2% per annum)," the report says.

The survey revealed the trust index for bank deposits in August was 58 points out of a maximum of 90 (this is 5 points higher than the same period in 2023). Since the beginning of 2024, the indicator has exceeded the 60-point mark twice, reaching 61 points in April and June.

The savings behavior index in August 2024 was 58 points out of a possible 90, since one in three people said during the last poll that now it is better to "break even" as quickly as possible by spending one’s current income on personal needs and investing savings (33%). In August 2023 the percentage of such individuals was 34% and at the beginning of 2023 it was 25%.

Meanwhile, the consumer confidence index has decreased from 52 points to 44 points over several months.

According to VCIOM, 75% of Russians said that in today’s environment, it was "rather bad" to take out a loan. Only 9% called it a good time for lending in August, similar to figures obtained in September 2022 (9%). For comparison, in March-June 2023, when these numbers were relatively high, only 16% of Russians said they were optimistic.

The all-Russian telephone survey VCIOM-Sputnik was conducted on August 24, 2024 among 1,600 Russians over the age of 18. The maximum margin of error, with a probability of 95%, doesn’t exceed 2.5%.