The average Australian woman’s superannuation account contains almost half that of her male counterpart, a report has revealed.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, women retire with a mean of $105,000 compared to $197,000 for the average man.
Meanwhile, women currently hold around $44,866 in super while men have almost double that at $82,615, data from an Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) recent snapshot shows.
In light of the findings, ASFA has called on women to spend an hour sorting out their super.
“There are many things in life that we cannot control, but taking control of your super today could add thousands of dollars to your retirement savings,” ASFA CEO Pauline Vamos said.
“The data released confirms that females still have a lot of catching up to do when it comes to their superannuation savings,” Vamos said.
“We know people are time poor and for many women, who are juggling things such as work, kids and other chores, sorting out their super is the last thing they have time for.
“However, the tough reality is that around 90 per cent of women will retire without enough in their super account to fund their lifestyle in retirement,” she said.
Super funds had a “tremendous month” in November, according to new data.
Australia faces a decade of deficits, with the sum of deficits over the next four years expected to overshoot forecasts by $21.8 billion.
APRA has raised an alarm about gaps in how superannuation trustees are managing the risks associated with unlisted assets, after releasing the findings of its latest review.
Compared to how funds were allocated to March this year, industry super funds have slightly decreased their allocation to infrastructure in the six months to September – dropping from 11 per cent to 10.6 per cent, according to the latest APRA data.