According to the latest data released by the central bank, China’s household renminbi deposits increased by RMB 14.26 trillion in 2024, with the balance of household renminbi deposits exceeding RMB 151.25 trillion for the first time. Based on a population of 1.4 billion nationwide, this translates to an average of RMB 107,000 saved in banks per person.

This not only marks the first time that China’s household deposits have surpassed the RMB 150 trillion threshold but also the first time that the per capita deposit has exceeded the RMB 100,000 mark.

Looking back over the past five years, there has been almost no letup in the pace of saving among Chinese people. Saving and consumption are like two ends of a balance; as one end rises, the other falls.

More savings, in turn, imply lower consumption. The uncertainty brought about by the three-year pandemic still lingers today and has not completely dissipated.

This saving spree began in 2020 and continues to this day.

From the beginning of 2020 to the end of 2024, Chinese households deposited a net amount of approximately RMB 72.5 trillion into bank accounts, mostly in the form of time deposits. The new deposits over these five years exceeded the total from 2005 to 2019.

Among them, Chinese people contributed RMB 17.84 trillion and RMB 16.67 trillion in deposits in 2022 and 2023, respectively, the two years with the highest deposit growth on record, unaffected by interest rate cuts across various banks, big or small.

In the just-passed year of 2024, Chinese people deposited another RMB 14.26 trillion in banks, equivalent to about RMB 10,000 saved per person.

Although the amount of savings by Chinese people has declined compared to peak levels, this is more likely due to income constraints rather than a decrease in the willingness to save.

A review of changes in China’s deposit figures over the years clearly illustrates this point.

Starting from the U.S. subprime mortgage crisis in 2008, Chinese people saved RMB 4 trillion that year, and this figure remained relatively stable until 2012. By 2012, deposits by Chinese people reached nearly RMB 6 trillion, and from then until 2019, just before the COVID-19 pandemic, deposits in banks were just under RMB 10 trillion.

The real explosion in deposits began in 2020, when deposits by Chinese people surpassed the RMB 10 trillion mark, reaching RMB 11.3 trillion. In 2021, deposits declined slightly to RMB 9.9 trillion as the pandemic improved.

In 2022, deposits surged to RMB 17.84 trillion, hitting an all-time high.