With inflation in the Balearics last month the highest in Spain (the cost of living rose by almost one per cent), a study carried out for the Spanish Union of Insurance Companies has revealed that five out of every ten people are worried about their future. The majority of the population is well aware of the importance of saving money, but in practice, only four out of every ten manage to put money aside. According to the Union of Insurance Companies, the main reason is because the majority of people are unaware of the best ways to save money. Nearly half of the Balearics prefer to spend their money rather than save it. On the whole, the Balearic population believes that it is up to them to financially look after their future, as opposed to relying on the state, their family or employer. While most people fully understand the need to find the most adequate means of setting money aside for retirement, at the same time they do not believe that the state's pension schemes are sufficient. Just five per cent have faith in their company looking after their future. The majority of people are concerned about the future, only 29 per cent claim they are not worried about anything. But what complicates the majority of people's financial situation further is the runaway cost of living in the Balearics. While many would love to be able to pay into pension funds etc., at the end of everything, 42.6 per cent of the Balearics say that they are finding it hard enough to reach the end of the month. The study carried out by Mercados Gallup for Companies, contradicts reports about the level of personal income and wealth in the Balearics and suggests that while some people are enjoying a high level of wealth the vast majority are finding it tough - 35 per cent of the population are in debt over loans and mortgages. One of the conclusions to the study is that while most people would like to save for the future, either the money is not freely available, they are unaware of the options, or they cannot find a safe, secure and reliable savings programme.
Half the Balearics feeling the pinch