Status: 09/28/2022 10:19 am
Consumer sentiment in Germany has continued to fall significantly due to weak economic expectations and rising energy costs. It has never been as low as it is now since measurements began.
The consumer mood of the Germans has reached a record low due to weak economic expectations and rising energy costs. The index value for October determined in the consumer climate study in September fell by 5.7 points to minus 42.5 points, as the Society for Consumer Research (GfK) announced today.
“Many households are currently being forced to spend significantly more money on energy or set aside for significantly higher heating bills,” said GfK expert Rolf Bürkl, explaining the result of the monthly survey of around 2,000 consumers. “Accordingly, they have to save on other expenses, such as new purchases.” Since the survey of the economic barometer for all of Germany in 1991, no worse value has been measured.
Consumers will buy less
For the eighth time in a row, the sub-index of the so-called propensity to buy has suffered losses. The barometer fell to its lowest value since October 2008 – that was during the financial and economic crisis. “The propensity to consume is currently being put under great pressure by the increased energy prices,” explained the market researchers. “For consumers, a recession is becoming more likely.”
The currently very high inflation rates of almost eight percent led to large real income losses among consumers and thus to a significant reduction in purchasing power, it said. “Since it is not foreseeable at the moment when inflation will noticeably weaken again, difficult times are ahead for the consumer climate in the coming months,” warned Bürkl.
For its representative studies on the consumer climate, GfK conducts monthly interviews with consumers about their economic expectations, their income expectations and their propensity to buy.