Statement by the President on Savings by American Families During 1964.

LAST YEAR was a record year for personal incomes. But while Americans were raising their living standards, they were also setting aside a peacetime record "nest egg" of savings.

Figures which the Securities and Exchange Commission will release in detail next week show that the net financial saving of individuals in 1964 amounted to $29 billion,

--about one-third higher than in 1963 or in 1962; and

--about 75 percent higher than their saving in the highest preceding postwar year.

The total wealth of American families crossed the $1 trillion mark early last year and surpassed $1.1 trillion by the end of 1964.

American families on the average added more than twice as much to their liquid asset holdings (in deposits, securities, and insurance and pension funds) as they borrowed last year. Consumers have sensibly divided their benefits from the tax cut and from growing prosperity between spending and saving. Their prudence has added to purchasing power for the future and created a sound foundation for continued prosperity.