FRANKFURT – Consumer confidence in Germany deteriorated significantly in April, falling well below a previous record set in spring 2020 during the first pandemic lockdown, a key survey showed Wednesday.
According to the GfK consumer climate survey, both economic and income expectations and the propensity to buy have fallen noticeably. For example, the GfK index forecasts a minus of 26.5 points for consumer sentiment in May, a minus of 10.8 points compared to April.
The survey was carried out on behalf of the European Commission from March 31st to April 11th to assess the mood for May. It is based on interviews with around 2,000 consumers.
“The war in Ukraine and high inflation rates have put a heavy damper on consumer sentiment,” said GfK consumer expert Rolf Bürkl. “This has finally dashed hopes of a recovery from the easing of restrictions caused by the pandemic.”
Survey results show that the sharp rise in energy prices and rising inflation rates are affecting consumers’ purchasing power and causing income expectations to fall sharply to their lowest levels in almost twenty years.
“Only if the peace negotiations on the war in Ukraine are successful will there be a lasting turnaround in consumer sentiment,” said Bürkl.
https://www.politico.eu/article/german-consumer-pessimism-deepens-survey/?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS_Syndication German consumer pessimism deepens: poll - POLITICO
