2023-07-13 13:50:02
All options were on the table. But the one that was chosen is the most unexpected. Against all expectations, the rate for the Livret A – as well as that of the Livret de développement durable et solidaire – will not change on August 1 and will remain at 3%. However, the strict application of the formula, which notably takes into account the half-yearly average of inflation, led to a new theoretical rate of 4.1%. Specialists in regulated savings were still counting on a derogation from the rule, to take into account the impacts on the economy, with a compromise of 3.5%.
Finally, the public authorities decided for a more radical decision, the status quo. “We have decided to maintain the rate at 3%”, confirmed this Thursday the Minister of the Economy Bruno Le Maire on the set of 13 Hours of TF 1.
In order to take the pill, the Governor of the Banque de France guarantees savers that this rate will be maintained over 18 months, i.e. until January 2025. And the People’s Savings Booklet only drops to 6% while the slowdown inflation to 4.5% in June, should have lowered its rate to 5.6%. “We must continue to encourage popular savings through the development of the LEP”, insists François Villeroy de Galhau who proposes to raise the ceiling from 7,700 to 10,000 euros. And sets a target of at least 12.5 million LEP (against 9.7 million today) for 18.6 million eligible French people.
Up to 230 euros of loss of earnings for a saver over one year
Not sure that this is enough to extinguish the anger of the French holders of a booklet A and not eligible for the LEP, who were impatiently awaiting this revaluation. For an average outstanding amount of 5,800 euros, maintaining the rate at 3% instead of going to 4% represents a shortfall of 58 euros in interest per year. If you are at the ceiling of 22,950 euros, the note goes to 229.50 euros.
This decision by Bercy and the Banque de France is in any case a relief for the banks and the Caisse des dépôts et consignations (CDC) which manage respectively 40% and 60% of the outstanding amount of the livret A (400 billion euros ) and the Sustainable and Solidarity Development Booklet (142 billion euros). Thus, in a full year, a rate increase of 1 percentage point would have cost the banks nearly 2.2 billion euros. Insurance companies can also blow even if the record collection recorded on the livret A came rather from transfers from current accounts and that there was no “cannibalization of life insurance by the livret A” as we explained Franck Le Vallois, Managing Director of France Assureurs.
The relief is even greater on the social housing side. With a move to 4%, social landlords, who have 140 billion in debt with the CDC through variable-rate loans indexed to the livret A, would also have seen their interest charges increase by 1.4 billion. euros per year. Ditto for local authorities and SMEs. Éric Lombard, managing director of the CDC, had also pleaded last weekend for the rate of the livret A to remain blocked at 3%: “Since inflation is transitory, it would be logical for this effort to be asked of the savers in order to support social housing and local development”. His arguments were finally heard.
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