Who's saving the most

Savings (Percent disposible income)

Among the 29 nations that make up the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the United States ranks last when it comes to saving its disposable income.

The US has gone from saving 8.8 percent of disposable income in 1980, to 5.3 percent in 1990, to a projected -0.8 percent in 1999.

Hungary, meanwhile, is in the lead with a 19.1 percent projected savings rate in 1999.

But no panic is warranted. Although debt has risen sharply in recent years, investment portfolios have grown faster, while tangible assets have accelerated, too.

(c) Copyright 1999. The Christian Science Publishing Society