After a long dry spell, Germans are in a bit more of a mood to buy again. Both expectations regarding income and the inclination to make larger purchases showed noticeable increases at the end of the year, according to the study on the consumer climate, which was published on Wednesday by the consumer research company GfK and the Nuremberg Institute NIM.
In their forecast for January, the institutes see the consumer climate at -25.1 points. This means an increase of 2.5 points compared to the previous month. However, the consumer climate before the corona pandemic was comparatively stable at around +10 points.
“It remains to be seen whether the current increase represents the beginning of a sustained recovery in consumer sentiment,” said NIM expert Rolf Bürkl. “Consumers are still very worried.” Geopolitical crises and wars, sharply rising food prices and discussions about the federal budget caused uncertainty. “Consequently, the level of consumer sentiment is currently still extremely low,” emphasized Bürkl.
Only when solutions to the international crises have been found and measures have been taken to ensure greater price stability can consumption recover stably. The most important support for the slight improvement at the end of the year is the income expectation. People could hope for higher wages and salaries. In a survey, a third answered that wage increases that had already taken place or were about to lead to an optimistic assessment.
In the wake of improved income prospects, the propensity to buy is also increasing. In addition, the economic pessimism has also subsided somewhat. Economic expectations rose by 1.9 points compared to the previous month and 10 points compared to the same period last year. (dpa)
