Consumer sentiment in Germany has surprisingly improved somewhat. Income expectations, which had deteriorated significantly with the start of the Iran war, were noticeably more positive in a survey by consumer researchers from the GfK and NIM institutes in May than in April.
According to a study by consumer research institutes published in Nuremberg on Friday, the consumer climate indicator rose to minus 29.8 points in June, from the previously revised minus 33.1 points. Analysts, on the other hand, had expected a weaker consumer mood and had assumed an average value of minus 34.0 points.
According to the report, the propensity to buy remains subdued despite a slight increase and the propensity to save is once again declining slightly. Recently, the consumer climate in Germany has trended significantly downwards, primarily due to the war in Iran and its consequences. “However, the burdens caused by the conflict in the Middle East remain in general and are still visible in the consumer climate,” said NIM consumer expert Rolf Bürkl. However, since the conflict has not escalated further so far, it is currently only having a limited impact on consumer sentiment.
The majority expect the situation to worsen
The majority of consumers expect the situation to worsen in the next twelve months. Consumers also expected prices to continue rising. Nevertheless, the propensity to save fell slightly for the third month in a row – albeit to a level that is still high in a long-term comparison and is only slightly below that at the beginning of the year.
For the study, the Nuremberg consumer researchers surveyed 2,000 people between April 30 and May 11. The EU Commission is responsible for the survey.
