Three out of five Europeans who have not yet retired think they are on their way to retirement. get the retirement income you want. That number increases to 66% in Spain64% in Germany and 63% in Switzerland. Italy, for its part, is lagging behind with 50%. As might be expected, those earning higher incomes tend to express more confidence than those earning lower incomes. In general, the men express a greater confidence about their future as pensioners than women; Thus, 64% of the former claim to be on the right path, compared to 52% of the latter.
It is one of the conclusions of the 2025 Report on European investor sentiment prepared by the fund manager Fidelity International. The truth is that perceptions vary greatly between different countries. Thus, according to this study swiss They estimated that they would need an annual income of around 93,000 euros to live comfortably during retirement, while the Spanish needed about half. In the six countries surveyed, the estimated average income to live comfortably during retirement is around 52,000 euros annual.
Contributions to pension plans
The retirement is a priority for European retail investors and many of them are taking the right steps. However, systemic limitations mean that they are still not sufficiently prepared to face a longer retirement. According to the study, in which 5,500 people from France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain and Switzerlandrespondents mentioned contributions to their pension plans as a priority, above any other financial goal. This imperative, cited by 39% of respondents, trumped “Maintain my current lifestyle” and “Build an emergency fund” among the top three financial goals.
Inflation, the biggest risk for retirement
Investor optimism regarding the ability to retire comfortably presupposes an istable inflation, constant income, predictable expenses and the absence of negative circumstances at the personal level, in the markets and in the policies of the authorities. None of these assumptions hold. “What’s more, with Increased life expectancy has increased the risk of not having sufficient income during retirement“, they say from Fidelity.
Although people feel confident, they are very worried. For example, the inflation was mentioned by 42% of respondents close to retirement as a major barrier to achieving their retirement goals. Although inflation transcends borders, the degree of concern expressed by respondents varies. For example, in Spain and inflation was mentioned as a major obstacle by 47% of those surveyed, being the country where it is the most worrying.
Health as a source of unforeseen expenses
The last of the three main obstacles to an adequate retirement are unforeseen expenseswhich were mentioned by el 31% of the respondents. The Family obligations, medical emergencies, and unexpected home repairs are difficult to predict, but common in practice.
Concerns about health during retirement predominate, since they were mentioned by the 42% of the respondents. Among people 55 and older, that figure rises to 45%, according to the survey.
At 44%, women worry more about health problems than men, at 41%. This is perhaps due to the fact that women live longer and, therefore, are more likely to need more long-term care. Meanwhile, public health systems are under increasing pressure, causing coverage gaps that shift more costs to citizens.
