Fewer workers are planning to save for their retirement in the United Kingdom than those living in China and Malaysia, a report by HSBC bank showed on Thursday.

British workers fail to save for their own retirement as they continue to avoid the alarming changes to pension provision in the United Kingdom.

The survey shows that despite the impending shift in the workers-to-retirees’ ratio, workers are still spending too much of their yearly income and are setting aside too little money. Thus, they are highly at risk to suffer impoverishment in the future.

HSBC bank published the report, which assessed the attitudes of the people across the world towards retirement, on Thursday. British people knew that they would possibly live longer than the other generations ahead of them. However, although they were aware that traditional pensions were expected to weaken, they still failed to save enough money for their retirement.

The total number of people aged over 65 around the world is expected to increase from 550 million today to more than 1.4 billion in 2050. Thus, financial provision in later life is an important matter to consider.

The report says that both Europe and North America are nearing a crucial stage as the first group of baby boomers approach their retirement. In Europe, the working population is set to diminish from 2012 and onwards.

However, the survey, which asked 17,000 people in 17 countries, showed that one in five UK residents planned to rely solely on state provisions (currently equal to 100 euro per week) when they reach old age, and failed to save some of their money.