A barometer than measures Irish people’s attitudes to saving rose to its highest level in March.

The Nationwide UK (Ireland) savings index was buoyed by a rise in the number of people who said they feel more positive about the amount they could save.

A rise in the headline index was undercut, however, by a drop in the savings environment sub-index, which asks consumers if they believe government policy encourages saving.

The latter may be connected to concerns over a prolonged period of political deadlock arising from the inconclusive result of the February’s general election.

The State's main consumer sentiment index, collated by KBC Bank Ireland and the ESRI, recorded its largest monthly drop in 17 months in March for the same reason.

The latest Nationwide survey also records an increase in the sub-index for savings attitude, driven by a surge in those who feel more positive about the amount they could save.

The increase is particularly noticeable amongst the under 50s, with a 65 per cent increase in that demographic saying they feel better about their ability to save. The level of people who said they save regularly rose to 42.3 per cent from 41 per cent the prior month

Brendan Synnott, managing director of Nationwide UK (Ireland) said: "We have seen two key trends in the index in March. The first is the substantial increase in the number of savers who feel positive about the amount they can save."

“In recent months this figure has been somewhat depressed. One likely reason for the increase is that as we move into the second quarter, savers now have more visibility of their finances. Consumers have started to pay down Christmas debts and we have also seen a fall in unemployment,” he added.