Three-quarters of Americans plan to save rather than spend, poll shows

Sept. 9 (UPI) -- The vast majority of Americans say they plan to save money rather than spend it in the near future, and that finding a COVID-19 vaccine will have an impact on their fiscal plans, a Gallup survey showed Wednesday.

The survey, part of the Franklin Templeton-Gallup Economics of Recovery Study, showed seven in 10 respondents said a vaccine will impact their willingness to return to normal spending.

The poll also showed that 76% said they plan to continue saving money over the next six months. A little less than a third said they will spend savings on basic goods or services; 13% plan to spend it on a vacation or travel; and one in 10 said they will pay off existing debt.

"With consumer spending traditionally driving approximately 70% of the U.S. economy, it appears that a broad and consistent economic recovery may depend primarily on the development of an effective vaccine," Gallup wrote.

When asked how they are saving, 79% of respondents said they're keeping the money in a bank account and about a quarter said they added the savings to a retirement account. Seventeen percent have invested savings in fiscal markets and 5% in real estate.

"A majority of Americans plan to moderate their overall spending compared with pre-pandemic levels, which means unemployment and underemployment are likely to persist at elevated levels for the foreseeable future," Gallup added.

The survey showed that 45% said development of a coronavirus vaccine will have a "major" impact on their spending, and 26% said it would have a "minor" impact.

Gallup said the data is based on web surveys of 5,000 U.S. adults taken from Aug. 3-11.