Despite continued adverse conditions, the German Trade Association (HDE) expects “at least slightly improved retail sales in the current year”. The industry’s total revenues are expected to increase nominally by 3.5 percent compared to the “difficult” previous year in 2023, the organization said on Wednesday. In real terms – i.e. adjusted for the effects of price developments – the growth rate will be one percent.
“The current year will most likely be better for retail than the last. Even if the purchasing power losses of the last two years cannot be compensated for, this is at least a positive signal for the industry,” explained HDE President Alexander von Preen in a statement.
However, “no major growth impetus is expected from online retail in 2024 either,” the association said. According to the forecast, revenues in this segment will increase by three percent in nominal terms and one percent in real terms.
Association President von Preen warns of a “shift to the right in politics and society”
Despite the cautious confidence, the HDE still sees “many risks for consumption”. These included “the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East as well as the worsening labor shortage.” In this context, von Preen expressly warned “of a shift to the right in politics and society”.
“Many sectors of the German economy are running out of staff. This obvious challenge alone should be reason enough to see that with the exclusion and the contestation of people from other countries and cultures that are looking for their happiness in our country, the wooden path, ”emphasized the HDE President. “It’s good and it’s time for all decent Democrats to get their act together and make it clear which side the majority is on. The time of silence must be over, now color is the order of the day. “