The Effect of Population Ageing on Household Portfolio Choices in Italy

Based on widely accepted evidence on the exceptional ageing of the Italian population, this paper aims to assess the impact of ageing on household portfolios in Italy and hence ultimately on financial markets. To this end, we use data taken by the Bank of Italy Survey of Household Income and Wealth (SHIW) over the the period 1995–2004 and we analyse the average household portfolio in relation to demographic characteristics. In contrast to some results reported in the literature for the US, we find that financial choices of Italian households are sensibly affected by age. It follows that the exceptional ageing of the population in Italy is going to have relevant consequences on the Italian financial market.