Norwegian women fund investors slipping behind
On International Women's Day the Norwegian Fund and Asset Asset Management Association (VFF) has published figures showing that the country's female investors are falling behind in terms of regular investments into funds.
On International Women’s Day the Norwegian Fund and Asset Asset Management Association (VFF) has published figures showing that the country’s female investors are falling behind in terms of regular investments into funds.
More than 710,000 Norwegians – about 14% of the total population- are engaged in contracted regular investment savings into one or more securities funds. However, men account for 408,000 of these agreements, against 302,000 women.
“And not only do men account for most of the contracts, but they also save more per month than women with equivalent savings agreements,” said Lasse Ruud, managing director of VFF, and board member of the European Fund and Asset Management Association (EFAMA).
Norwegian men invest about NOK311m (€42m) monthly through these regular savings into equity and mixed funds, compared to NOK176m (€24m) for women. That works out to an average NOK763 per month against NOK583 per month for women – a 24% differential, VFF’s figures suggest.
Ruud said there was a clear need for women to consider saving more. They live longer and often have to rely on lower retirement income from their pensions.
Another factor noted in VFF’s figures is that the differential has grown in in recent years. Between 2006-2011 only about half as many women as men signed up to new contracts for regular savings. During that period men also increased their average monthly savings by 13.2%, while women increased their by just 3.7%, or NOK21 per month. VFF said that inflation over the period was about 10%, meaning that in real terms the value saved by women monthly actually fell.
