Markets

How Investment Goals Vary by Country and Age

Published

6 years ago

August 28, 2018

Jeff Desjardins

How Investment Goals Vary by Country and Age

It goes without saying that investors want to see their money grow.

However, it turns out that why investors want their money to grow changes considerably, depending on who you are talking to.

Investment Goals by Geography

Today’s infographic from Raconteur first shows why people invest based on country of residence.

In the following table, we’ll show selected data to illustrate an interesting contrast between North American, Asian, and European cultures:

Country	Primary Investing Goal	Percentage
Canada	Saving for retirement	78%
USA	Saving for retirement	71%
UK	Saving for retirement	71%
Hong Kong	Saving for retirement	48%
Germany	Saving for retirement	40%
France	Saving for retirement	27%
UAE	Saving to start a business	31%
China	Beneficiaries / estate planning	42%

In Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom, saving for retirement is the primary investment goal for 70% or more of all respondents. However, in Europe and Asia, there is a much wider diversity of investment goals.

In Germany and France, for example, close to a quarter of respondents mentioned that saving for an emergency was their primary goal, behind saving for retirement. Meanwhile, in the UAE and in China, the primary investment goal was not retirement – it was instead saving to start a business (UAE) and setting up family and/or beneficiaries for success (China).

Goals by Generation

It’s not just geographical boundaries, the level of economic development, and the local culture that impacts investment goals.

Another factor is generational: Baby Boomers, Gen Xers, and Millennials are at very different stages of life, and each generation has their own quirky preferences, anyway.

Statement (I want to…)	Highest Agreeance	Lowest agreeance
Retire comfortably	Boomers	Millennials
Make sure money is safe	Boomers	Millennials
Preserve as much wealth as possible	Boomers	Millennials
Pass on wealth to my heirs and others	Millennials	Gen Xers
Ensure I have funds to pay for important events	Millennials	Boomers
Invest at the lowest cost possible	Boomers	Gen Xers
Have the best advice possible and am willing to pay	Millennials	Boomers
Retire early	Gen Xers	Boomers
Not miss out on market opportunities	Gen Xers	Boomers
Choose riskier investments to build wealth fast	Millennials	Boomers

Not surprisingly, as people get older, their goals shift away from making immediate big-ticket purchases, and holding riskier investments for a higher rate of return. Later on in life, goals are more focused on retirement and maximizing wealth.

That said, there are some anomalies in the above data that are interesting.

For example, Millennials – not Baby Boomers – are most concerned about building wealth to pass onto their heirs. Finally, it is the Millennials that are willing to pay the most for investment advice, in order to get the best possible result.

Related Topics:investing demographics countries age generations goals differences

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Markets

Mapped: Europe’s GDP Per Capita, by Country

Which European economies are richest on a GDP per capita basis? This map shows the results for 44 countries across the continent.

Published

1 day ago

May 6, 2024

Pallavi Rao

A cropped map of GDP per capita levels for 44 European countries.

Mapped: Europe’s GDP Per Capita, by Country (2024)

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

Europe is home to some of the largest and most sophisticated economies in the world. But how do countries in the region compare with each other on a per capita productivity basis?

In this map, we show Europe’s GDP per capita levels across 44 nations in current U.S. dollars. Data for this visualization and article is sourced from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) via their DataMapper tool, updated April 2024.

Europe’s Richest and Poorest Nations, By GDP Per Capita

Luxembourg, Ireland, and Switzerland, lead the list of Europe’s richest nations by GDP per capita, all above $100,000.

Rank	Country	GDP Per Capita (2024)
1	🇱🇺 Luxembourg	$131,380
2	🇮🇪 Ireland	$106,060
3	🇨🇭 Switzerland	$105,670
4	🇳🇴 Norway	$94,660
5	🇮🇸 Iceland	$84,590
6	🇩🇰 Denmark	$68,900
7	🇳🇱 Netherlands	$63,750
8	🇸🇲 San Marino	$59,410
9	🇦🇹 Austria	$59,230
10	🇸🇪 Sweden	$58,530
11	🇧🇪 Belgium	$55,540
12	🇫🇮 Finland	$55,130
13	🇩🇪 Germany	$54,290
14	🇬🇧 UK	$51,070
15	🇫🇷 France	$47,360
16	🇦🇩 Andorra	$44,900
17	🇲🇹 Malta	$41,740
18	🇮🇹 Italy	$39,580
19	🇨🇾 Cyprus	$37,150
20	🇪🇸 Spain	$34,050
21	🇸🇮 Slovenia	$34,030
22	🇪🇪 Estonia	$31,850
23	🇨🇿 Czech Republic	$29,800
24	🇵🇹 Portugal	$28,970
25	🇱🇹 Lithuania	$28,410
26	🇸🇰 Slovakia	$25,930
27	🇱🇻 Latvia	$24,190
28	🇬🇷 Greece	$23,970
29	🇭🇺 Hungary	$23,320
30	🇵🇱 Poland	$23,010
31	🇭🇷 Croatia	$22,970
32	🇷🇴 Romania	$19,530
33	🇧🇬 Bulgaria	$16,940
34	🇷🇺 Russia	$14,390
35	🇹🇷 Türkiye	$12,760
36	🇲🇪 Montenegro	$12,650
37	🇷🇸 Serbia	$12,380
38	🇦🇱 Albania	$8,920
39	🇧🇦 Bosnia & Herzegovina	$8,420
40	🇲🇰 North Macedonia	$7,690
41	🇧🇾 Belarus	$7,560
42	🇲🇩 Moldova	$7,490
43	🇽🇰 Kosovo	$6,390
44	🇺🇦 Ukraine	$5,660
N/A	🇪🇺 EU Average	$44,200

Note: Figures are rounded.

Three Nordic countries (Norway, Iceland, Denmark) also place highly, between $70,000-90,000. Other Nordic peers, Sweden and Finland rank just outside the top 10, between $55,000-60,000.

Meanwhile, Europe’s biggest economies in absolute terms, Germany, UK, and France, rank closer to the middle of the top 20, with GDP per capitas around $50,000.

Finally, at the end of the scale, Eastern Europe as a whole tends to have much lower per capita GDPs. In that group, Ukraine ranks last, at $5,660.

A Closer Look at Ukraine

For a broader comparison, Ukraine’s per capita GDP is similar to Iran ($5,310), El Salvador ($5,540), and Guatemala ($5,680).

According to experts, Ukraine’s economy has historically underperformed to expectations. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, the economy contracted for five straight years. Its transition to a Western, liberalized economic structure was overshadowed by widespread corruption, a limited taxpool, and few revenue sources.

Politically, its transformation from authoritarian regime to civil democracy has proved difficult, especially when it comes to institution building.

Finally, after the 2022 invasion of the country, Ukraine’s GDP contracted by 30% in a single year—the largest loss since independence. Large scale emigration—to the tune of six million refugees—is also playing a role.

Despite these challenges, the country’s economic growth has somewhat stabilized while fighting continues.