Speaking of Saving Your Money

Again, from The Motley Fool, a great article on the economy with some info that I hadn't seen elsewhere...

Good news. No, great news!

The personal savings rate is exploding. In fact, we saved more in the last three months of 2008 than in all of 2005 and most of 2006 combined. Consumers saved an annualized $310 billion last quarter, or 2.9% of disposable income. As a percentage of disposable income, that was the highest rate since early 2002.

But then...

There are obviously more factors involved here, but consumers’ slamming their wallets shut has been a driving force in the economy's collapse. In an economy that derives 70% of GDP from consumer spending, the correlation between increased savings and economic fallout is painfully clear.