The European Central Bank (ECB) has announced the release of experimental statistics on Distributional Wealth Accounts (DWA). These statistics provide quarterly household distributional information in alignment with national accounts.
In a press release from the ECB, it was stated that the data was developed to support its 2021 monetary policy strategy. This strategy includes a systematic assessment of the two-way interaction between income and wealth distributions and monetary policy. The publication of this data is in line with recommendations made by the G20 Data Gaps Initiative.
The press release further explained that the DWA merges household-level data from the Household Finance and Consumption Survey (HFCS) with macroeconomic data in sector accounts. The ECB said, "This complements current household survey data." It was also mentioned that the data will be compiled every quarter and published five months after each period ends.
According to the same press release, the initial release of this data shows that household net wealth in the euro area increased by 29%, or approximately €13.7 trillion, over the past five years. Homeowners, who make up more than 60% of the population, experienced a larger increase in net wealth compared to non-homeowners. The ECB reported that homeowners' net wealth rose by 27% during this time frame, largely due to rising property values. Non-homeowners’ net wealth grew by 17%, which ECB says is attributable to an increase in deposits. The data also indicates that inequality, as measured by share of wealth held by the top 5% versus the bottom 50%, decreased slightly over these five years, although it remained above 43%.
The ECB press release noted that this data can be accessed via the ECB Data Portal. Future updates will incorporate any revisions to quarterly sector accounts. Additionally, data from 2021 onwards will be revised when subsequent HFCS waves become available.